Iqbal Masih, a true martyr and real hero, proved to the world that age truly is just a number. Coming from a region where it is normal to sacrifice children in efforts to pay off family debts, Iqbal refused to settle for this life.

Iqbal, a fictional novel narrated by Fatima, a child slave owned by Hassan Khan to work in his carpet factory. Life at the carpet factory was the same routine daily until Iqbal arrived. On the outside he looked like a regular Pakastani child servant sold into bondage to pay off his families debt. But on the inside he was a brave young man ready to fight for his freedom. Iqbal had an energy about him that let the other children know that it was okay to dream even after his failed attempt at escape. He knew he would be free and made all the other children get with the program.

Iqbal is one of those novels that force you to step outside of your little box and realize that children all over the world are living in extreme circumstances and it should not be so. Iqbal is truly a hero. While reading this novel I thought often that he had more gumption than many adults. Too many times we sit back and allow injustices to happen because we don't want to cause problems or because we don't want to interfere. This book is a quick read and designed for kids ages 8-12.

It's a rather short, fast-paced novel that is able to convey the heart-breaking lives of children forced into slavery/servitude that so many are still facing in our so-called modern world. The novel is based on the real-life of Iqbal Masih and the courage he had to defy what so many had come to accept. He pays the ultimate price for his heroism and this novel does a wonderful job in keeping his memory and his mission alive.

This would make an interesting companion to Counting on Grace -- Iqbal fought child labor in modern Pakistan.

This is a powerful story. A young man who worked for several different "masters" finally is able to achieve his freedom. Once he has achieved his freedom, he doesn't stay away from trouble. Instead, he contacts an organization and starts to help other young people to be free and reunited with their families. What incredible courage and strength he shows. It's an amazing story and I strongly recommend it.

The autrocities that young children are forced to endure all over the world is sometimes never seen or heard of by young people in the US. For this reason, after I read Iqbal a few years ago, I applied for (and won) a grant for a class set of these books to lead a book club. Social justice at your doorstep.

One of my favorite books!

I decided to read this book because I saw the play over ten years ago and ever since wanted to know more about Iqbal’s story. I almost forgot about how much this story affected me until I relived the joys and triumphs coupled with the sorrow and pain. I am glad my emotions responded in the same way they did when I was a child.

Riveting. Read to a group of 4th graders. Everyone on edge of their seats!

This novel is an extremely powerful account of the life of Iqbal Masih. The story of this child laborer who works to free other children from this life is told through the eyes of Fatima, a child who supposedly worked with Iqbal in the carpet factory. Through making carpets, to extreme punishment in "the Tomb", to Iqbal's freedom and time with the Liberation Front of Pakistan, we learn about his courage and determination. The ending of the novel, with Iqbal's eventual death, may be too strong for some younger readers, but the way it is told to the reader is still very powerful. This book would be useful as a resource for a class studying the United Nations or the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.