Cynthia Kadohata really doesn't pull any punches, and this book, set in North Vietnam after the American forces have withdrawn is a very realistic story of genocide. It's also a story about profound bonds with elephants, and about the hopeless choices one makes in war. It's packed with all kinds of thoughtful relationships and messages, but ultimately it is a tragic piece. There are no winners, there is only hardship with a thin gleam of hope, and there is a horrific massacre. I'm glad to know more about this time in this country, even as my own country's actions appall me, but I would keep this book for tweens or teens -- Y'Tin may only be 13, but the lessons he is learning are harsh. ( )

An interesting bit of as-yet unmined vein of middle reader historical fiction depicting the lives of the tribal hill people (the Rhade) in the highlands of central Vietnam. Y'Tin is the ?13-yera-old protagonist, the youngest elephant handler in his village when the story opens in 1973 and his family and people are helping the American forces there. The narrative jumps to 1975 after the fall of Saigon and the Americans are gone and Y'Tin (with his excellent tracking skills in the jungle and his beloved elephant, Lady) must do what he can to help his people survive the Vietcong's destruction of their villlage. ( )

An interesting bit of as-yet unmined vein of middle reader historical fiction depicting the lives of the tribal hill people (the Rhade) in the highlands of central Vietnam. Y'Tin is the ?13-yera-old protagonist, the youngest elephant handler in his village when the story opens in 1973 and his family and people are helping the American forces there. The narrative jumps to 1975 after the fall of Saigon and the Americans are gone and Y'Tin (with his excellent tracking skills in the jungle and his beloved elephant, Lady) must do what he can to help his people survive the Vietcong's destruction of their villlage. ( )

I really liked Y-Tin and his family and learned something about their culture and superstitions and the elephants in Vietnam. I was saddened at the idea that such a young boy would think he would need to fight the Vietcong, but that's probably more realistic than my fantasy of him escaping with the elephants to Thailand. ( )

Y'Tin is an elephant trainer in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. The story is set in 1973, just before the American ground withdrawal from Vietnam. When American troops leave Y'Tin's village, the Vietcong overrun it and imposes a brutal collectivist regime. Eventually, Y'Tin and Lady, his elephant, flee their village to escape the the Communists, but then the youngster suffers one tragedy after another. Aside from the tragedy of ordinary Vietnamese, A Million Shades of Gray is an entertaining, and heartbreaking, adventure tale that teaches the values of persistence and perseverance. Middle schoolers are exposed to the Vietnam debacle to a degree; Kadohata's book provides insight into the human dimension of the war from a Vietnamese viewpoint.