The Importance Of Wings
Robin Friedman
The Importance of Wings
Charlesbridge Publishing, 2009
170 Pages
ISBN – 978-1-58089-330-5
Being different is always hard. Being the only one who’s different is even harder.
Roxanne and her family are from Israel. With her mom back in Israel taking after a sick family member and her dad working long hours, Roxanne and her little sister, Gayle and her have to live –and cook – for themselves. That is, until Lait moves in next door. Based in the 1980’s, The Importance of Wings teaches readers about acceptance and that even before 9/11, people from the Middle East were not always welcomed – even in the schools.
Roxanne wants to be an all American girl. She wants to eat American, dress American and she wants wings like all the other girls her age, she even changed her name. Trying so hard to be American, Roxanne forgets that she is also Israeli and proud of it! It isn’t until Lait comes into her life that she realises she’s ignoring her home roots and learns a very important lesson.
