Charcoal Boys

This unusual picturebook for older audiences will surprise readers with its unconventional subject matter and approach and may not appear immediately accessible – but those who give it the time and attention it deserves will be rewarded. Mello’s sophisticated papercuts and collages take us on a journey deep into unfamiliar territory, a world of scrubland furnaces where children labour to produce charcoal, and his evocative prose – somewhere between a poem, a conversation and a dream – is narrated by a hornet, whose insect’s-eye view makes the story even more surreal. But forcing boys to work in such conditions is surreal, and this book raises awareness about child labour in one of the most powerful ways of all – by immersing us in something that communicates more than just the facts.
Events in this book unfold in story-form. A hornet is caring for his larva in its muddy nest. In his search for food to nourish it, the hornet observes a boy and his friend as they tend the charcoal ovens, inadvertently start a bushfire, hide from the inspectors and make an unplanned trip to the steelworks. On his return the boy destroys the hornet’s nest – “Are you listening to me, boy? Waste of time, I’m shouting in Hornet, he understands only Boy”– and is duly stung by the insect, who seems more attentive to his young than are the adults who should be caring for the charcoal boys. But around and between these plot points lie other ideas and inferences for readers to notice and interrogate – Mello leaves much unsaid and invites us to fill in the gaps. What is the significance of Albi’s key? Is the hornet right to call himself bad? And what happens to the boy after he’s been stung? Observant readers will notice the word either, and draw their own conclusions. All does not end well in charcoal-burning territory, and we emerge with our eyes opened, blinking, wondering how and where and why we were transported.
This is a book that deserves to be explored and shared and talked about, but may require adults to champion it to get it off the shelves. It would make a great starting point for investigative and creative activities. Roger Mello is an internationally-acclaimed Brazilian author-illustrator and recipient of the Hans Christian Andersen Award who has published more than a hundred titles for children and young adults. Daniel Hahn is an editor of the Ultimate Book Guide series and a prizewinning translator. Elsewhere Editions is based in New York and the text for this book includes some US vocabulary.