Dakiri Burkhardt December 2, 2013 ENGL 414A LSW Multicultural Fiction I believe that Homeless Bird definitely created

d a vibrant picture of what life in India is like by illustrating both the positives and negatives of society within the novel. It is important for students to be exposed to a variety of cultures because the world is bigger than just the United States. For example, I think that it would definitely catch students off guard that a lot of the settings illustrated in the novel did not have electricity, telephones, computers, or really any technology. This would be a majorly foreign concept to most students because they all at least electricity in their homes or have been somewhere with technology of some kind. If anything, this novel would definitely teach students not to take things for granted in their lives because there are people in the world with lives much worse off than their own. It would also show them that there are different ways of living and functioning in society, other than the way it is done in America. Another important element of Indian culture that I believe is important for students to take away from this novel is arranged marriage. In America, that concept is really foreign and just unimaginable, especially to younger generations. However, it is an important part of Indian culture. This would be a good opportunity to discuss freedom, what it is, and how it can be taken from people in other cultures. It is important to make sure that this conversation is monitored because just because Indian culture is different does not make it wrong. Ultimately, I do not think that there was anything seriously inappropriate for elementary aged students. It is a little longer than most novels for younger students, but if broken down into

sections than I think it could be managed. When I was in elementary school, we had afternoon readings of A Child Called It. That book, I believe, was extremely inappropriate for students my age. The graphic details of that book were so vivid. Most nights, I had nightmares about the things that happened to the little boy. What made it worse was that it was a true story. So, if that book can be seen as appropriate for elementary aged students, than Homeless Bird should be perfectly appropriate. However, I might consider sending a permission slip home so that parents could consent to their child reading it, depending on the age group and maturity level of my students. If parents did not want their child to participate, then I would have another multicultural fiction novel for them to choose from.