Book Review: From Another World – Caitlyn Harrington
From Another World by Ana Maria Machado is a Brazilian children’s novel that was originally published in Portuguese in 2002 under the name Do outro mundo and was translated into English and published in Canada in 2005. Ana Maria Machado is one of the most celebrated writers of children’s literature and was a recipient of the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2000 which recognizes her as making an important and “lasting contribution to children’s literature” (“Hans” 1). Machado was born and currently lives in Rio de Janeiro. She has worked all around the world and she says her traditional rural Brazilian upbringing combined with her travels and experiences, shapes her writing with an “intellectual sophistication which ends up reflecting quite accurately Brazilian society” (Kline 1). From Another World is a story told by Mariano, a young Brazilian boy who discovers the story of a slave girl from 1888 when he and his friends encounter her ghost on an old coffee plantation.
From Another World begins with a message for the reader to be patient, that Mariano, who wrote this story, does not like to write and is only writing this story because he made a solemn promise and was chosen to write this story. Mariano’s hesitance to write the story, but deep sense of obligation, intrigues readers that this story must be very important for him to share. Mariano and his friends are allowed to stay in a newly renovated inn that their parents set up on an old Brazilian coffee plantation. The four children stay overnight in a separate building on the farm’s property that they call the annex. The children discover a ghost of a young girl that is black skinned, wearing a long white dress and turban like the slaves used to wear. The children welcome the girl, named Rosario, and form a friendship with her. They learn that she was a slave on the coffee plantation in the late 19th century and had lived in the senzala, or slave quarters which was what the children had been calling the annex. The children continue meeting up with Rosario and learn her story. They are able to understand the dangers and extreme horrors of slavery that Rosario lived through, and are able to connect her stories with the slavery that they had read about in history books. Rosario tells how she and her brother, Amaro, worked with two free children to help runaway slaves escape by leaving a rowboat for them. Rosario then shares the horrifying story of her death which takes place after 1888 when the Gold Law, making slavery illegal, was passed. Mariano struggles to even write Rosario’s story because it was so terrible. After the evil slave master learned that the slaves were going to be freed, he tricked all the slaves into going to the senzala. All the slaves, minus Amaro who was going to hide the boat they left for runaway slaves, were gathered together in the senzala awaiting their announcement of freedom. The slave master cruelly has his henchmen lock the men, women, and children inside and set it on fire. After telling this story to the children, Rosario chooses Mariano to tell her story so that her story will be remembered and something so terrible may never happen again. The children consult with Dona Carlota who is the grandmother of the two children, Leo and Elisa, who grew up on this farm. They are able to piece together that Dona Carlota’s grandfather was Amaro, the slave brother of Rosario who had been spared from the fire.
In my opinion, Ana Maria Machado’s From Another World was an incredible novel with aspects of fantasy combined with history to provide a powerful, emotional story. Although parts of this book were difficult to read because of the terrible events that Rosario went through, I think it was told in a moving way. Without being too graphic, the suffering and pain that Rosario experienced during slavery was delivered to the children and readers. The children were able to understand on a more personal level what their ancestors and slaves experienced. Mariano writes how he was able to better understand the events that he had read and learned about in history class by hearing it from Rosario’s first-hand experience. I had been aware of the slavery that took place in Brazil; however, I was not really aware of the laws banning parts of slavery that were gradually laid out before its eventual ban in 1888. I believe it would be beneficial for children from all over to read this story, because although it is about Brazilian history, the horrors of slavery are still felt today. One of the most important parts of this novel for me was the discussion among the children about how slavery still does exist today, regardless of its illegality, in forms of human trafficking. Another poignant discussion among the children was why Mariano was the one chosen to tell Rosario’s story. Mariano thinks that Rosario made a mistake in choosing him because he has lighter skin, whereas, Leo and Elisa have darker skin and their ancestors were enslaved. Leo argues that Mariano having to write the story is “punishment” because he is descended from slave owners, however, the group ultimately understands that remembering and retelling stories about history is the burden of everyone because it is our job to prevent the same history from repeating itself. This story was well-written and very impactful with a powerful message about the importance of freedom and remembering history. This is a universal story which teaches about slavery from first-hand experience which makes it an important work for all children to read.
Works Cited:
“Hans Christian Andersen Awards.” International Board on Books for Young People, www.ibby.org/index.php?id=273. Accessed 22 Apr. 2019.
Machado, Ana Maria. From Another World. Translated by Luisa Baeta, Groundwood Books, 2005.
Machado, Ana Maria. Interview by Julie Kline. An Interview with Ana Maria Machado, June 2000, https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/authors/machado.asp. Accessed 22 Apr. 2019.
The Hans Christian Andersen Awards, 1956-2002. International Board on Books for Young People, 2002.