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Island's End | Padma Venkatraman | India
Putnam Juvenile | 2011 | ISBN: 0399250999
Synopsis:
In a far away place, there is a remote island that time has forgotten. With no traces of the modern world, the island is home to a deeply spiritual tribe that is in need of a new spiritual leader. This leader is fifteen year old Uido who has been blessed with the ability to see the “otherworld” in her dreams. However, becoming the spiritual leader will be a difficult journey. She is faced with a brother who is trying to undermine her at every turn, and people from other modernized Islands who want to develop the land, use their lumber and bring violence and disease. As the modern world comes closer and closer to destroying her tribe, Uido has to earn the trust of her tribe and preserve their spirituality. With her spiritual connection, Uido predicts a giant wave and moves her tribe to higher ground. This wave happened to be the great tsunami of 2004, and while many other people died, Uido saved her tribe and earned their trust.
Teaching Ideas:
A. Rationale for Use in the English Classroom (where/how it would “fit”, complement to other ELA content, etc.) This book could easily be used in any ELA classroom. It is a classic coming of age novel that incorporates literary elements. It would be a great novel to focus on teaching conflict, as it is difficult to sometimes find an accurate portrayal of a “man versus nature” conflict. This novel presents a vivid conflict between nature and society. I think it could easily be paired with other similar novels, such as The Giver (which I know in the City was taught in 8th grade). It would be nice to offer a choice between the two or use them to compare and contrast literary elements and theme. B. Before/during/after Reading Activity For a before reading activity, I would introduce my students to the Andaman Islands, and build a little background knowledge. If I were using this in a middle school classroom (or with 9th graders) I would use this article, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/10025907/Call-for-boycott-of-Andaman-Islands.html. Before I gave them the article, I would have them answer the following questions in their journal: “Should people be allowed to travel wherever they want? Why or why not?” We would then do a shared reading of this article and discuss. If I were using this novel with my juniors and seniors or in a book club, we would watch the following video, read the article and discuss the police actions. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/07/andaman-islands-tribe-tourism-threat. For a During reading activity I would focus on conflict. I would work with my students while we were reading and focus on internal conflicts within the characters (specifically Uido and Lah-ame), character versus nature, character versus character and character versus society. I would set up a graphic organizer and have students work through each type of conflict using examples from the story. For an After Reading Activity, I would have my students look up information about the tsunami and complete a research guide answering questions about the deep and devastating impact of the disaster. While I remember it very well, many of our students would have been young at the time and my students often lack global perspective. I think one of the most interesting things about this book is its historical perspective and its roots in facts. I think that after reading it my students may need a little knowledge about the tsunami and its significance in the plot and outcome of the novel. C. Connections to other content areas This novel has clear connections to World History or Geography. I think there could also be a connection to Biology and Botany with the study of the medicinal herbal roots.
