Majd Baki Baki من عند Perle-Veysa, Samarskaya oblast', روسيا، 446477 من عند Perle-Veysa, Samarskaya oblast', روسيا، 446477

I was pleasantly entertained by this book and would eagerly recommend it to both adults and teens alike. The complexity and parallelism in the story made it much more than just a story about a teenager being punished (in an admittedly severe and odd manner) for a crime he didn't commit. I especially enjoyed the interwoven links between Stanley, Zero, the Warden, Kate, and Madame Zeroni. The threads are all there to find. Aside from a bit of rough language, this book would be an interesting piece for a classroom, perhaps eight or nineth grade. The undertones of race and historical discrimination would provide a fairly good starting point for introducing other, more intensive perspectives like "To Kill a Mockingbird". As an example of YAL, this fits precisely into what one would expect of the category. The only difference I noticed from much of what I have read in YA is that Stanley's parents, while not really present in the events of the story, are not worthless, disconnected, or ambivalent.