The Glass Collector

Plot Summary

Fifteen-year-old Aaron lives and works amid the garbage piles of Cairo.
His job?
To collect broken glass.
His hope?
To find a future he can believe in.

Today in Cairo, Egypt, there is a city within a city: a city filled with garbage--literally. As one of the Zabbaleen people, Aaron makes his living sorting through the waste. When his family kicks him out, his only alternatives are to steal, beg, or take the most nightmarish garbage-collecting job of all.

Anna Perera's richly detailed second young adult novel transports readers to the heartbreaking world of the Zabbaleen.

CCR-RL.8-12.1,2,3,4,5,6,9,10

Awards

A 2013 CBC/NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People; Best Children's Books of the Year 2013, Bank Street College

Reviews

"Perera takes teen readers into a new world in this often-eloquent novel....A novel of hope and redemption in the most unlikely of settings." Kirkus Reviews

"A strong narrative voice captures multiple viewpoints of the 'Zabbaleen,' Coptic Christian citizens of Cairo's 'Garbage City'....Perera draws a vivid portrait of the community's squalid living conditions....A powerful rendering of human struggle, resilience, and hope." Publishers Weekly

"The Glass Collector is Perera's second book about growing up in the world's forgotten zones." ForeWord

"...this compelling novel's descriptive, eloquent prose and diversely drawn characters affectingly portray the hardships facing Egypt's poor. This novel has contemporary, timely relevance, but Perera also incorporates timeless themes of self-discovery, adapting to change, and how happiness and beauty can be found in the most unexpected places." Booklist

"...the strongest element of the story is the fact that the author wants readers to know who these people are and why they should be appreciated." School Library Journal

"...an exquisitely rendered portrait of a little-known world....The descriptions are often extraordinary....The best part is its full-blooded portrait of Aaron, a likable boy seeking love in the grimmest of environments and moving between self-contempt and pride in his outcast identity." The New York Times

"The imagery is powerful, and the depiction of urban squalor is chilling." The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"Aaron is a very likable character and while he isn't flawless, he ultimately finds positive resolution in his situation." Library Media Connection

Associated Keywords
Cairo, Egypt, Zabbaleen, Coptic Christians, social class, social issues, garbage people, mokattam, moqattam, garbage city, recycling, teen, young adult