The Day War Came

A child describes how her life and her world were totally disrupted when war came to her country and how she had to flee alone. When she eventually reaches a place which she believes war has not reached, she finds a school where children are learning about the same things she was learning about in her home country. The teacher tells her that there is no room for her but in a hopeful and moving dénouement the children each bring chairs so that the refugee child and others in her situation will be able to come to school and symbolically be able to find a new home, a new place to be. The voice of the child in the text and Rebecca Cobb’s illustrations of friendly-faced children encourage empathy, enabling young children to think and ask questions.