Bookverdict.com

Gr 5–8—In a brief but sweeping 17th-century tale, acclaimed Brazilian children's author Machado intertwines compelling stories of two exiled Portuguese orphans, an enslaved African family, and an aboriginal boy who meet in Brazil. Survivors of the plague, siblings Bento and Manu live on the streets of Lisbon. After Bento is arrested in a tavern brawl and sentenced to exile, distraught Manu is aided by a wealthy couple who arrange safe passage and haven for both boys in Brazil. Far away, on the African savanna, Odjidi and his family are captured and forced onto a sla...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

Early in the seventeenth century, young Manu and "his" older brother Bento, orphaned by the plague, abandon their decimated Portuguese village for Lisbon, where work in a tavern sustains them until Bento is unjustly imprisoned. Fortunately, Don Diogo and Dona Ines rescue Manu from a lean street life; their discovery that Manu is Manuela, disguised as a boy for safety, coincides with readers'. When Bento is sentenced to exile in Brazil, Manu accompanies him, and thanks to various benevolent Brazilians, includi...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

Early-seventeenth-century orphans Manu (Manuela, disguised as a boy for safety) and "his" older brother Bento abandon their Portuguese villa...Log In or Sign Up to Read More