{"id":2759,"date":"2020-03-22T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-03-22T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itslitteaching.com\/?p=2759"},"modified":"2025-09-17T15:49:16","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T19:49:16","slug":"baobab-tree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itslitteaching.com\/baobab-tree\/","title":{"rendered":"Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree: Connect Students to the World"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How do you get American students to even begin to grasp life in a third world country? With Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em> by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani and Viviana Mazza, students will be able to engage and connect to the world beyond their own lives.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One of the greatest gifts that literature provides is the ability to see lives beyond our own. Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em> introduces readers to an unnamed female protagonist and her life in an African village.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While all she wants is to succeed in school and make her family happy, Boko Haram and his men are moving toward her village. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission, at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products that I personally use and love, or think my readers will find useful.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What Drew Me To Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A year or two ago, my Instagram feed was full of images of Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em><\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like I do with all yummy book recommendations, I had added it to my Amazon wishlist. There, it languished for years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, however, a colleague reached out to me requesting historical fiction recommendations for her social studies classroom library. I sat down to draft a list…. Only to find that I was stumped!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was a distinct lack of historical fiction in my own classroom library<\/a>. <\/strong>I realized that I had to remedy this gap in my library curation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em><\/a> <\/em>finally made it off of my wish list and into my cart. And let me tell you–it was worth all of the hype!
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What Makes To Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree “Lit”?<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Part of this novel’s greatness is the protagonist. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

She remains unnamed throughout the whole story. This is a powerful writing move. Because so many young girls in Nigeria could tell this story, she embodies not just one, but all <\/em>of their histories.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like many young girls, she lives in a village in rural Nigeria. Education is guaranteed to no one. Often, students must leave school early to work and contribute to their families.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our protagonist wants to finish and attend college in the city more than anything. Thus, she works hard, hoping to earn a college scholarship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, we meet her family and other village residents. I absolutely loved hearing about Nigeria’s culture and traditions through this story!<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While we learn about the struggles and the difficulties–especially for young women–we also see a lot of love and religious inclusivity. <\/strong>This includes meeting an Islamic family who later acts as a positive foil to militant, Muslim radicals.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree Connects Student to Global Events<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another “lit” aspect of the novel is that it’s based on real-life events. <\/strong>The authors compiled this story from interviews with Nigerian girls abducted by Boko Haram. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The protagonist does not shy away from talking about her fear, the murders she witnesses, or the rape she experiences. There are, however, no gratuitously graphic scenes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s a “safe” way to begin conversations that can often be uncomfortable or triggering, but that nevertheless are important to have.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The recency and relevance of Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em> is something that I think will really resonate with your students. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Young adults are passionate about fairness and justice. Expect some outrage when they found out this story is based on recent events. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This novel would be an excellent supplement to a social studies class or as an anchor text in a world literature course looking to teach some YA. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This would also be a great addition to any literature circle, especially one involving social justice issues or global connections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think it also has the added bonus of being so pro-education! Your students will be forced to recognize what a gift their education is!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Who’s the Ideal Reader for Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree?<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This book will be highly accessible to many readers!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The issues and themes presented will engage your deep-thinkers. <\/strong>They’ll be able to make connections between domestic and international issues, cultures, and religions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lexile level is around freshman year (ish). However, the sections are broken up in such a way that the book reads more easily than the Lexile level suggests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think the inclusion of African words bumps the Lexile score higher than it should be. Throughout the text, the sentence structure is very simplistic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even students below grade level will be able to follow along.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Major themes of the book are ideas to which every student can relate: education, family, and friendship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even students who can’t place Nigeria on a map or who haven’t heard of Boko Haram will have a point of entry into Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even the boys in class would be able to enjoy this novel. (Although the main character does discuss how her period makes attending school difficult, so be prepared!)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em><\/a> would be a remarkable World Literature whole-class read or novel option.<\/strong> Because it’s so accessible, relevant, and deals with serious issues so delicately, I would teach it with global literature in a heartbeat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I would love to see this book being taught as an anchor text (and if you do this, I’d love to hear from you!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is, of course, an excellent addition to any classroom library<\/a> as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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To Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree: <\/em>THE FACTS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Title: <\/em>To Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author: <\/em>Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani and Viviana Mazza<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lexile: <\/em>920L<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Genre: <\/em>Realistic fiction, historical fiction<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Setting: <\/em>Nigerian village<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Main Character: <\/em>Unnamed girl living in a Nigerian village who is later abducted by Boko Haram’s men<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Page Numbers: <\/em>330 (this is deceiving–half of the pages are only partially used!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similar Recommendations:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n