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Chapter 28
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Boy Overboard, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Immigration, Family, and Home
Identity and Ancestry
Hope
Gender and Discrimination
Summary
Analysis
Bibi asks Jamal how many days they’ve been on the boat. She’s resting against his arm, and he notices she has a fever. He answers five days, but Rashida corrects him, saying it’s six. Jamal thinks Bibi is trying to figure out how much longer they can survive since food ran out that morning. He tells her not to think about the days, but Bibi says it’s her birthday. Jamal realizes she is right and apologizes, feeling bad that she is spending her birthday on this boat. They all wish her happy birthday.
This passage emphasizes the emotional and physical challenges of Jamal and Bibi’s journey, as well as the increasingly deteriorating conditions on the boat. Not only is their food running out, but things that are normally a cause for celebration—like Bibi’s birthday—are unable to be enjoyed or appreciated.
Themes
To cheer up Bibi, Jamal suggests they plan a party for her birthday in Australia. Jamal says that the Australian government comes to your house with cake and drinks on your birthday, and Omar and Rashida ask if they bring sardines and hamburgers too. Jamal says yes, but Bibi says she prefers ice cream. Jamal says they have 50 different flavors of ice cream in Australian supermarkets. Omar asks what a supermarket is, and Rashida explains, saying her mom used to love them. She tells them that she used to live in Australia, but when her family traveled to Afghanistan to look after their grandparents, the government wouldn’t let them return. Jamal thinks of his own family and feels sad.
While trying to cheer Bibi up by planning an Australian birthday party for her, Rashida shares a glimpse of her own life story. She reveals she is not only originally from Australia, but that her parents are currently stuck in Afghanistan; they had only enough money to send her back home. This reminds Jamal of his own parents and shows Jamal how commonplace it is for parents to sacrifice for their children. Much like Jamal’s parents, Rashida’s parents are clearly willing to do anything to ensure a better life for their child––even if that life does not include them in it.
Themes
