A French journalist originally helped publish the diary of Ma Yan, a fourteen-year-old Chinese girl who struggled to stay in school and receive an education under grueling circumstances. Ma Yan is the first in her family to have a real chance at getting out of the poverty and backbreaking work that has beaten down her family for generations. Her parents go to great lengths to be able to afford to keep her in school, and she lives in constant fear of failing and dishonoring her parents’ sacrifice. Her insight is incredibly astute, her gratitude and love for her parents is powerful. Along with the typical stress of being a student in a rigorous school, Ma Yan also must deal with the guilt that she is not contributing money to the family, and almost constant hunger and cold. American readers will be shocked at how much thinking Ma Yan had to do on so few calories! Photographs of Ma Yan, her family, and the rural Chinese community in which she lives are included in this important volume. Since it’s original pubulication in a French newspaper, funds have been raised to help children like Ma Yan stay well-fed and clothed and in school. Ma Yan writes in a letter to her French supporters that “I really understand what joy in this world means: friendship. . . You said that you could help other children from families in need. . . Let them too complete their schooling and fulfill their dreams. All my thanks.” (Ages 9–14)

Amid the extreme poverty and harsh climate of her remote Chinese village, thirteen-year-old Ma Yan registers her overwhelming desire to be educated through her diary entries. These diaries, handed to a French journalist by her mother, were originally published in France. Although the entries reveal she is frequently berated for her academic performance and is often hungry, cold, and exhausted by the long walk to her boarding school, she remains steadfastly determined to continue her schooling so as to make her family proud and to give back to her community. 2006 USBBY-CBC Outstanding International Books List. nlr

Originally published as Le Journal de Ma Yan in French by Editions Ramsay France, in 2002. Translated by Lisa Appignanesi from the French (the diaries were originally translated from the Mandarin by He Yanping).

Wednesday, November 7

My father gave me and my brother a little money. My stomach is all twisted up with hunger, but I don't want to spend the money on anything as frivolous as food. Because it's money my parents earn with their sweat and blood.

I have to study well so that I won't ever again be tortured by hunger. . . .

In a drought-stricken corner of rural China, an education can be the difference between a life of crushing poverty and the chance for a better future. But money is scarce, and the low wages paid for backbreaking work aren't always enough to pay school fees.

Ma Yan's heart-wrenching, honest diary chronicles her struggle to escape hardship and bring prosperity to her family through her persistent, sometimes desperate, attempts to continue her schooling.

First published in France in 2002, the diary of ma yan created an outpouring of support for this courageous teenager and others like her -- support that led to the creation of an international organization dedicated to helping these children . . . all because of one ordinary girl's extraordinary diary.