''A Girl Named Disaster'' is a 1996 novel written by

Nancy Farmer Nancy Farmer (born 1941) is an American writer of children's literature, children's and young adult books and science fiction. She has written three Newbery Medal, Newbery Honor books and won the U.S. National Book Award for Young People's Liter ...

. The book explores the qualities needed to survive in a hostile environment (particularly by a woman),

coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can b ...

, and the availability of spiritual guidance. The book has been well-received. In 1997, it won the

Newbery Honor The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished contr ...

for the novel, landed on the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

's list of Top Ten Books for Young Adults, and was a finalist for the

National Book Award for Young People's Literature The National Book Award for Young People's Literature is one of five annual National Book Awards, which are given by the National Book Foundation (NBF) to recognize outstanding literary work by US citizens. They are awards "by writers to writer ...

Plot

Nhamo is an 11-year-old girl living in a traditional Shona village located in

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

around 1981. She was raised with the knowledge and customs of her tribe. Nhamo means "disaster" in the Shona language. Nhamo was given this name because of the scandal and wrongful things continued to follow her and her mother. After experiencing trouble with a cholera epidemic, a leopard, and an arranged marriage proposed by a false witch doctor, she flees with her dying grandmother's blessings, some gold nuggets, and her meager survival skills. Nhamo steals a boat and supplies under her grandmother's instructions and uses the river as her road to Zimbabwe, where she faces the threat of hippos, crocodiles, and other animals trying to kill her, while dealing with the pressures of becoming a woman. What should have been a two-day boat trip across the border to her father's family in

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

spans a year in which Nhamo faces starvation and the threat of hungry or aggressive animals. The girl finds her way to a lush, haunted island and lives alongside a troop of baboons. Daily conversations with spirits combat Nhamo's loneliness and provide her with sage and practical advice. She makes mistakes, loses heart, and nearly dies of starvation. Even after she arrives in Zimbabwe where she lives with scientists before meeting her father's family, Nhamo must learn how to live in a modern society (clothing, behavior, literacy), and is urged to let go of the "evil" spirits that "possess" her as prescribed by a Muvuki or witch finder.

Characters

*Nhamo Jongwe: The girl named "Disaster". She got her name due to the many disasters she faces during her life, even as a child. However, Nhamo is resourceful and clever, in spite of the bad luck she supposedly causes. *Aunt Chipo: Nhamo's bad tempered aunt, who has resented Runako, Nhamo's deceased mother and Chipo's older sister, since they were children. She has hated Nhamo and her mother ever since she was born and forces her to do most of the work in the village, allowing her daughter, Masvita, to do the less strenuous tasks. *Masvita: Nhamo's sweet tempered cousin, who behaves respectfully towards Nhamo, in spite of how mean-spirited her mother is. *Aunt Shuvai: Nhamo's younger aunt. She is considerably more ambivalent to Nhamo. *Uncle Kufa: Nhamo's uncle and Aunt Chipo's husband. He is a pragmatic man. *Ruva: Aunt Chipo′s second daughter. *Ambuya: Nhamo and Masvita's grandmother. She treats Nhamo with respect and loves her dearly, and is one of the few people to do so. Chipo resents her mother, believing that Ambuya favoured Runako (Nhamo's mother) for doing well in school and Shuvai, who was the youngest of Ambuya's three daughters. *Crocodile Guts: A fisherman *Sister Gladys: A nurse who takes care of Nhamo in the later part of the book. * Goré Mtoko : A man who was killed by Nhamo's father * Muvuki: the witch finder * Rumpy: A baboon with no tail that is constantly bullied by other baboons. He tried to bully Nhamo while she was on the island, and later was killed.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Girl Named Disaster, A 1996 American novels American children's novels Newbery Honor–winning works Novels set in Mozambique American bildungsromans Novels about survival skills 1996 children's books Orchard Books books Children's books set in Mozambique Children's books set in Zimbabwe Novels set in Zimbabwe Novels set in the 1980s Children's books set in the 1980s Novels by Nancy Farmer

Plot

Characters

See also

References