The Paki Times
Shabanu by Suzanne Fisher Staples
Summery
Shabanu by Suzanne Fisher
Staples is a realistic fiction book and
takes place during the 1970’s and
1980’s in the Cholistan Desert of
Pakistan. It is about the life of an eleven
year old, Muslim girl named Shabanu
who grows up in Pakistan. She and her
family are nomads and always have to
move around when their water supply is
low so hence, life is hard for them.
During this year, her sister Phulan gets
married at age thirteen while their
grandfather is dying. In addition
Shabanu’s parents also arrange her
marriage and expect her to be more
lady-like instead of being so wild. To
sum it up, Shabanu learns how to cope
with her life even though she thinks it is
unfair to girls.
What is Shabanu Like?
Shabanu is an eleven-year old
girl who is growing up in Pakistan.
Therefore, she is very different from an
average American kid. She is expected
to do housework and the only plan for
her future is to get married and move
into her husband’s home.
Continued on page 2…
Published by Shakira Ali December 23, 1975
\ Current Weather Conditions
39°F
Humidity: 70%
Pressure: 29.92in
Wind: Calm
Visibility: 0.9 miles
Location: Cholistan Desert of Pakistan
Time: 10:25 PM
17-Year-Old Killed by His own Landlord!
Just yesterday in the Cholistan
Desert of Pakistan, murder took place at
exactly 5:30 pm in the afternoon. The victim
was a young, seventeen year old man named
Hamir and the guilty landlord who shot him
was Nazir Mohammed. People described him
as a fat, greedy, rich man who owns a great
deal of land.
According to the witnesses at the
scene of the crime, Hamir had been angered
because of Nazir Mohammed’s actions. His
fiancé, thirteen-year-old Phulan and her little
sister, eleven year old Shabanu had been
almost kidnapped by the evil landlord and
his friends. Fortunately, Shabanu cleverly
prevented this by throwing a clay pot filed
with water at him, which caused the men to
be distracted.
Continued on page 2…
Newsletter 1
Shabanu feels short, clumsy and
tomboyish compared to her older
sister Phulan who she secretly
envies sometimes. Fortunately,
unlike her sister, she is not so
empty-headed and is smarter,
stronger and rebellious. Shabanu
loves the desert and is different
form most Pakistani girls because
she has no brothers, hence, has
responsibilities that normally a boy
in Pakistan would have such as
herding. She is happy with this and
especially the part where she gets
to be with the camels. Her parents
are worried for her because they
think that she is too wild and
constantly tell her to be more lady-
like since she is getting older.
Shabanu thinks that her culture is
unfair to girls because it requires
them to be “obedient” to men so
that’s why she wants to control her
life and have more freedom.
Shabanu even tried to run away
from home to find her aunt Sharma
who promised her a better life that
doesn’t include marriage.
Newsletter
After the two girls escaped, they
informed their parents. The father advised
his family (Wife, sister, and two
daughters) to flee to a safer town where he
would meet them after Hamir is informed.
Unfortunately, Hamir was not happy with
this upsetting news and his sister even
described him as, “A wild man. He always
had a terrible temper and took offense
easily.” Therefore, without thinking,
Hamir took his gun and tried to shoot the
landlord but got shot first.
According to the two young girls,
Nazir Mohammed and his companions
were having a competition to see who
could kill the most animals since it was
hunting season. The winner who shot the
most animals would have a female as a
“prize” that they would return the next
day, which is why Hamir was angered.
When Phulan heard about her husband’s
death, her exact words were, “God my life
was perfect, and you strike him down! Just
when I’m happy, everything changes”.
To make things right, after
Rahim-Sahib who is Nazir‘s older brother
gave the landlord a lecture, he offered a
deal with Shabanu’s parents. The deal was
that he would protect them from any
trouble and make them wealthy people if
they agreed to let him marry Shabanu.
Shabanu got married to him unwillingly
because he was much older than her and
already had three wives. In conclusion,
Phulan got married to Hamir’s younger
brother, Murad who was originally
engaged with Shabanu and she became
Rahim-Sahib’s fiancée.
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