Chanda's Secrets

An unforgettable novel about family, loyalty and survival in sub-Saharan Africa -- now a major motion picture.

"As soon as I get back from the shabeen, I go next door to see Mrs. Tafa. I have to ask to use her phone to let our relatives know about Sara. I'm nervous. Mrs. Tafa would like to run the world. Since she can't run the world she's decided to run our neighborhood."

So speaks sixteen-year-old Chanda, an astonishingly perceptive girl living in the small city of Bonang, a fictional city in Southern Africa.

While Mrs. Tafa's hijinks are often amusing, the fact is that Chanda's world is profoundly difficult. When her youngest sister dies, the first hint of HIV/AIDS emerges.

In this sensitive, swiftly-paced story readers will find echoes of To Kill a Mockingbird as Chanda must confront undercurrents of shame and stigma. Not afraid to explore the horrific realities of AIDS, Chanda's Secrets also captures the enduring strength of loyalty, friendship and family ties. Above all, it is a story about the corrosive nature of secrets and the healing power of truth.

Through the artful style of acclaimed author Stratton, the determination and resilience Chanda embodies will live on in readers' minds.

Chanda's Secrets was first published in 2004 to extraordinary international acclaim. It won the Michael L. Printz Honor Book for Excellence in YA Literature, was an ALA Best Book for Young Adults selection and, in France, was a finalist for the Prix Sorcières. It has now been made into a major motion picture, under the name Life, Above All. The film received a 10-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival and was honored with the prestigious Prix Francois Chalais. To coincide with the film's North American release by Sony Classics, the cover of this new reprint features a poignant still from the movie.

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