For a Maltese publication, 'Kidane' (2012), subtitled "a story of hope", is pretty impressive. Written in English by Clare Azzopardi, inspired by the true story of the Eritrean immigrant Goitom Yoisef, and published in joint collaboration between the Malta JRS (Jesuit Refugee Service) and the MAF (Malta Arts Fund), the story of Goitom/Kidane admirably aims to shed light on the universal plight of immigrants to young readers. 
 The people behind this publication deserve commendation. In a nation where the vast majority of the population feel as if they are being subjected to an invasion of foreigners, be it by irregular immigrants or otherwise, books like 'Kidane' remind us of the power that literature has in its potential to enlighten our mentality through narration. Indeed, in its own simplistic way, the charming illustrations by Marisa Attard and illuminating perspective of 'Kidane' evokes the idiom which Matthew Arnold considered to be a key component of literature in 'Culture and Anarchy' (1869), "sweetness and light". 
 The story of Kidane is, as I said in the introduction, based on the real story of Goitom Yoisef, who had escaped from Eritrea to avoid forced conscription into the army. After a perilous journey through many hostile African nations, Kidane/Goitom ends up in Libya, where he lugubriously describes how many immigrants are bullied and robbed of the few possessions they own. From Libya, Kidane embarks on his fateful journey to Malta. He manages to befriend the twins Sammy and Amy, to whom he recounts, like the real-life Goitom in the school visits organised by the JRS, all his experiences and pent-up emotions. 
 And this is exactly what makes this publication so great. It manages to humanize Kidane for us, who is not treated like some number in a vast sea of immigrants, and this is why such a story is so relevant today. I can only wish that these sort of publications continue to be published, for they are truly stories of hope.