The explosion jolts him awake. He sits up, gasping for air, heart thumping.Was the blast real? Perhaps it had only happened in his head, a bad dream. Demons of the dark, his father had called them. 'Push them away. They'll only poison your thoughts. Seek the light and they can't hurt you.'Naveed is sick of war - of the foreign powers and the Taliban, the warlords and the drug barons that together have torn Afghanistan apart. He's had to grow up quickly to take care of his widowed mother and little sister, making what little money he can doing odd jobs and selling at the markets. When he adopts Nasera, a street dog with extraordinary abilities, he has a chance to help rebuild his country. But will a new friend's betrayal crush his dreams of peace forever?From the winter of war comes the spring of hope.'Naveed brings a human face to a war we have heard so much about. John Heffernan has allowed us an important glimpse into the world of an Afghan child and an insight into the complexity and beauty of the Afghan people. In Naveed, we have a name for the thousands of Afghan children who are suffering through this terrible war. Through his optimism, we are offered hope.' - Neil Grant, author of The Ink Bridge

 

 

This book is the winner of numerous awards

This book is part of a book series called Through my Eyes .

This book has been graded for interest at 11-14 years.

There are 216 pages in this book.

It is aimed at Young Adult readers. The term Young Adult (YA) is used for books which have the following characteristics: (1) aimed at ages 12-18 years, US grades 7-12, UK school years 8-15, (2) around 50-75k words long, (3) main character is aged 12-18 years, (4) topics include self-reflection, internal conflict vs external, analyzing life and its meaning, (5) point of view is often in the first person, and (6) swearing, violence, romance and sexuality are allowed.

This book was published in 2015 by Allen & Unwin .

Rosanne Hawke lives in rural South Australia. Many of her 20 books have been shortlisted or notable in Australian awards, and Taj and the Great Camel Trek was the winner of a 2012 Adelaide Festival award. For ten years Rosanne was an aidworker and teacher in Pakistan and the Middle East. She is a Carclew, Asialink, Varuna, and May Gibbs Fellow, and a Bard of Cornwall. Rosanne enjoys writing adventures and mysteries about history, culture, relationships, music and cats. She lectures in Creative Writing at Tabor Adelaide. Lyn White has been a primary school teacher-librarian and EAL teacher for more than twenty years. She completed postgraduate studies in Editing and Communications at the University of Melbourne, and is passionate about engaging students with quality texts and teachers with quality resources. She is a part-time teacher at Blackburn English Language School and a pre-service supervisor with Deakin University. John Heffernan is a popular, award-winning author. He writes for all ages, across genres, and his books are routinely nominated for CBCA awards.