Just like Fish in a Tree and Counting by 7s, I got around to reading Born Behind Bars by Padma Venkatraman thanks to the NLF Reading Challenge. There’s just so much lovely literature out there just waiting to be read!
I was a little sceptical about reading Born Behind Bars, though. I’m not a fan of very dark, upsetting middle-grade literature. For instance, even though I found One for the Murphys gripping, it was too much for me. It’s emotional, well-told, powerful – but there’s just too much darkness there. I like heart-wrenching stories, but not that heart-wrenching.
And the premise of Born Behind Bars felt similar. A child born in prison and let out alone because he’s too old to stay in jail with his mother? I wouldn’t normally pick up a book if that was all I knew about it. Yet, during the conversation with the author, more than once, I got a sense of hope, of positivity. This made me feel that Born Behind Bars might just tread the line between beautifully emotional and dark in a way that I love.
And it does. Sweet, optimistic and shining with the innocence of childhood, Born Behind Bars is perfect for middle-grade readers who want a story of triumph. Kabir is lucky; there’s no question about that. In some ways, the story is almost simplistic, glossing over the terror I would feel as a child alone in the world. Things seem to go his way nearly all the time – in the way he escapes from difficult situations, in the friends he makes, and in the way kind people cross his path. Yet, this simplicity is what drew me to the story. Fiction does not always have to be representative. Instead, it can show you possibility and hope. With the right people, with kindness and love, things can go your way.
Above all, I loved the style of the story. Unadorned prose that gets to the heart of the tale without any fuss – I find myself drawn to writing of this sort more and more!
| Title | Born Behind Bars |
| Author | Padma Venkatraman |
| Tags | Middle-Grade, Friendship, Realistic Fiction |
| Rating (out of 5) | 4 |
| Age-group | 11+ |
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