Iqbal

• Genre: Fiction; young adult
• Originally Published: 2001
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 730L; grades 5-12
• Structure/Length: 15 chapters, introduction, and epilogue; approximately 122 pages; approximately 2 hours, 52 minutes on audio
• Protagonist/Central Conflict: This novel is based on the true story of the life and death of Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy born in 1983 who helped liberate child laborers. Fatima, the young narrator of the novel, works in a carpet factory, working long hours in the heat with little food. When she meets Iqbal, he gives her hope that she and the other children can have a life free from exploitation.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Child exploitation; child labor; murder of a child            

Francesco D’Adamo, Author

• Bio: Lives in Milan, Italy; writes Italian noir fiction for adults and fiction for young adults
• Other Works: My Brother Johnny (2008); Oh, Freedom! (2017)
• Awards: Christopher Award, Ages 10-12 (2004); Great Stone Face Book Award nominee (2005); Iowa Teen Award nominee (2007)        

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Guide:

• Coming Together to Escape Oppression
• The Power of Corruption
• The Economic Impact of Forced Child Labor

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Guide, students will:

• Develop an understanding of the economic and social contexts regarding the use of child labor in Pakistan’s carpet industry, which incites Iqbal’s campaign against enslaving institutions.