Book Title: I Will Always Write Back – How One letter Changed Two Lives
Number of Pages: 387
Book Author: Caitlin Alifirenka & Martin Ganda With Liz Welch
Image from Internet
Title
| I think the author chose this particular title for the book because the whole plot is around this title. Had it not been for the first letter Caitlin sent Martin in 7th grade, they would have never met, Caitlin would have never given Martin enough money for him to finish his tuition, and Martin’s family would be extremely poor. Martin wouldn’t be able to come to the United States either. The title is also called “I Will Always Write Back” because that is the promise Martin made to Caitlin. No matter what, Martin would always write to Caitlin. So, I think this title is very significant, as it started a 5-year interaction through letters and emails between Martin and Caitlin. Caitlin’s family was able to send Martin a lot of money and clothes just because Martin was able to slowly start asking them for it. Martin wasn’t able to bring up the courage to ask Caitlin and her parents for money at first, so he just left tiny hints in the letters he sent, but Caitlin, who really cared about her best friend, was able to figure it out, and Martin realized that Caitlin and her family were people he could trust and rely on. Without them, Martin wouldn’t be able to get into a college in the United States. |
Summary
| The book, I Will Always Write Back, is about two characters, Caitlin and Martin. Caitlin is from the United States, and her parents are able to supply her with everything she wants. Martin is from Zimbabwe, a country facing a lot of economic problems. Caitlin and Martin start talking through an assignment at their school, where they must get penpals. Most of the people in Caitlin’s class get penpals from Europe, and they don’t form strong relationships with each other, but Caitlin finds Zimbabwe interesting, so she chooses a penpal from that country. Martin is very friendly and smart, but he can’t afford to continue school. Caitlin gives him $20 after figuring out through clues that Martin’s family is extremely poor, which is a lot in Zimbabwe. Martin and Caitlin form a strong relationship over the next few years, with Caitlin helping Martin to achieve his goal of attending a college in the United States so that he can help his poor family. Caitlin and her family talk to many colleges and tell them about Martin’s fantastic grades, and how he is one of the smartest young people in Zimbabwe. They have a hard time finding a college that offers a full scholarship, but after a lot of hard work, Martin is able to go to Villanova College. |
Scene
My favorite scene in “I Will Always Write Back” is when Martin and his family get a huge box of clothes from Caitlin’s family. I feel so happy for the mother in this scene because she is able to wear shoes for the first time in her life, and the whole family gets a lot more clothes. The mother is also finally welcomed into society for having shoes, which I find very sad. A human should be welcomed to society even if they are poor, so I am really happy for the mother. Before, each person in the family had only one or two clothes, but now, everyone has enough clothes. I like the fact that Caitlin and her family are so generous to Martin, and I wish that there were more people like this in the United States. This scene takes place after Martin’s father loses his job and after Caitlin’s family finds out that Martin is very poor. Caitlin and her mother help organize a package of used and new clothes that can be given to Martin’s family.
Character
| I think Caitlin is the most interesting character in this book, because you don’t usually find an American who cares for people other than their family and friends. Caitlin is the only one in her class who actually picks a country from Africa, Zimbabwe. Caitlin doesn’t care about being the same as everyone else, she wants to be unique. Caitlin doesn’t care that everyone makes fun of her for talking to Martin. She treats Martin as her best friend, even more of a friend than the people at her school. The three traits Caitlin has are uniqueness, generosity, and finding the good in others. She is unique because she is the only one in her class who maintains a relationship with her pen pal, and she is the only one who contacts a penpal from an African country, while everyone else is contacting people in Europe. Caitlin is also very generous, convincing her parents to give Martin money. She even worked very hard as a pizza waitress to get Martin extra money. She cried so hard when she thought that they couldn’t get Martin a college admission into the United States, as she thought she failed him. Caitlin also finds the good in others. Even when her parents told her that Martin might be a scammer, Caitlin continued to try giving Martin money, not even listening to her own parents. |
Conflict & Resolution
| The major problem in the story for Caitlin and Martin is poverty. This is because Martin’s family is facing a large amount of poverty, barely able to pay rent, supply food, and keep their large family in school. Martin’s mother is very proud of her son, and she wants Martin to achieve his goal of going to the United States as a college student, so she is willing to do whatever it takes for that. Martin’s father is also very proud of Martin, but he faces low wages from the paper-making factory he works in. Martin’s father also spends a lot of money on alcohol, so he has less to spend on food for the family. Martin’s family is barely able to even eat meat. The poverty Martin’s family is facing contributes to a lot of problems, such as the fact that Caitlin and Martin were only able to talk to each other through letters at first, as Martin didn’t have a phone in his house. Martin also couldn’t follow his dreams before Caitlin gave money because his family couldn’t find money for him to go to school. The problem of poverty for Martin was solved by Caitlin giving money to him. Caitlin and her family also helped Martin stay in school. Caitlin’s mom worked so hard to get Martin into Villanova College, in the United States, and Martin also had to work extremely hard. Without Caitlin and her family, Martin would have never been able to pursue his career in the United States, and he wouldn’t have been able to even finish his education. So, the problem of poverty was solved with Caitlin’s support throughout the years. |
Change
| One thing I would change about the story is the fact that it is not exactly meant for middle schoolers in my opinion. This is because it talks about Caitlyn and her friends partying at 15 years of age. It also talks about how Caitlyn dated Damon, a guy who smoked in his basement. Damon isn’t a good role model for young readers, as he does whatever he wants, with his parents not caring. Caitlyn and her friends are extremely immature, going to a party, hopping in a random stranger’s car, and riding at 90 miles per hour. This is very dangerous as well. I would make the book more kid-friendly by taking out the part where Caitlyn and her friends party, and the part where Damon smokes. Otherwise, I would highly recommend this book due to how much of an impact it makes on Martin. This interaction between Martin and Caitlyn really happened in real life, after all, and I suggest that more Americans try to converse with countries in poverty. $20 for an average American is not a lot for them, but is a fortune for people living in countries like Zimbabwe. I think kids should read this book so that as adults, they will be wiser and more generous. |
