Having lived some similar experiences to the characters in the story I was looking forward to reading this book and see how it would be adapted for younger readers. I was not disappointed. I have to remember that this is the point of view of a child who was sheltered from some of the worst things, but overall it was a good introduction to war displacement.

The story after the first few chapters is a whirlwind of happenings, which, in my experience, reflects exactly what happens when your entire world comes crashing down on you and you are almost powerless. The point of view of a child who is no longer young enough to have no worries, but is not old enough to fully grasp everything is refreshing and very relatable. The part set in India had a unique flavour to it. The familiarity of knowing the expectations, but being on the outside because your life has been overall different is such a common trait in immigrant worker's children, but one that is not often acknowledged or talked about, we are expected to assimilate, but at best we can fake it.

The background history that starts the story is also a wonderful opportunity to encourage more research into the history of West Asia on behalf of children. Maybe I am biased by my experiences, but I can see this book being a gateway for so much more than just a compelling personal story.

I enjoy multicultural stories, and this was a good one.
Set in 1990, at the beginning of the conflict between Iraq and Kuwait, a young girl narrates what her family has to endure when they are forced to leave Kuwait and travel to India to live with relatives. The author wrote this book based on her own childhood experiences during the period just before and in the time of Operation Desert Storm.
This book would be a good tool to use in classrooms; the conflict between Iraq and Kuwait is important history that younger generations need to learn about.
My only complaint about this book is the frequent use of Indian/Hindi language with a glossary only provided at the end; this made the reading quite difficult at times. In Kindle format, it’s much harder to “flip” to different places in a book when it’s needed. Not as much of a problem in a print book!

*I received a digital copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.*

What We Left Behind is a tense yet hopeful coming-of-age story set in Kuwait during the Iraqi invasion of 1990. Before the invasion, Anvita’s life is filled with the ordinary joys of childhood: going to school, playing with her neighborhood friends, dancing, and spending time with her family and community at the beach. Her world feels familiar and safe, but everything changes when Iraq invades Kuwait and her family is forced to make difficult decisions about their future.

Anvita, her mother, and her baby brother flee to India for safety while her father must temporarily remain behind in Kuwait. Although Anvita has visited India several times for vacations, living there is completely different. She is suddenly surrounded by her father’s extended family and is adjusting to a new home, a new school, and unfamiliar expectations. As she tries to fit in with her classmates, Anvita begins to realize that she does not feel “Indian enough” compared to the other students. The experience leaves her caught between two cultures and unsure of where she truly belongs.

As Anvita navigates the fear and uncertainty of war, the challenges of a major move, and the culture shock of starting over, she begins to understand that belonging is not about fitting perfectly into one place or identity. Through the changes she faces, Anvita learns to speak up for herself, trust her own experiences, and find courage in situations she cannot control. What We Left Behind is a story about family, identity, resilience, and finding the strength to face the unknown, even when everything familiar has been left behind.

Thank you NetGalley and Raising World Children LLC for an ARC.

A story written through the eyes of a young girl whose family has to escape Kuwait and seek refuge back in her parents’ home country of India, this book highlights many challenges of immigrant families and kids that neither fully belong in one place or another. I particularly enjoyed the portrayal of the cultural differences and expectations for mothers in the two different places the protagonist calls home.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

I found this a very interesting and compiling story I have very vague memories of the conflict she was writing about, and know very little about this part of recent history I lived through. I feel that having a child perspective on a world event is very interesting and we need more books like this so that children who experience such things can be seen and so we can also learn from lives very different from our own. I appreciate the opportunity of reading this arc provided by Net Galley

This is a historical fiction that hasn’t been covered often. Set in 1990, it covers the war in Kuwait, through the eyes of an Indian girl who is learning about a new normal, over annd over again. Beautiful, descriptive storytelling as she relocates to safety with her family.

What We Left Behind was such an eye-opening experience of the horrors that children specifically face in the world when adults choose violence to get what they want.

Anvita is 11 years old, living her best life. She is going to school, playing with her friends, and going to the beach each weekend with her family and friends. That is until her life completely changes when Iraq invades Kuwait. Now she is stuck inside her apartment with her family, worried about what is going to happen. When bombs start going off near their home, they know they have to leave. But what do you take when you might never return? How do you accept what is happening and be ok?

Aditi Wardham Singh’s writing is engaging and kid-appropriate. You could feel Anvita’s emotions through the page. She went through all the stages of grief with having to leave her home and everything she ever knew. The lessons throughout What We Left Behind are so needed, especially in the world we live in now. Even though this story takes place during the invasion back in 1990, these same horrors are being dealt with even now, 35 years later. This story would be good for readers who enjoy reading about historical events through the eyes of a child, especially those who enjoy the I Survived series by Lauren Tarshis.