Age:
Post High School
Reading Level: 5.4
Chapter 1
Fifteen-year-old Jean Bosco is growing up on the outskirts of Kigali. It is a busy city in Rwanda. He has dreams and goals.
In his imagination, he can see himself sitting at the editor’s chair of a prominent daily newspaper in Central Africa.
Jean Bosco speaks fluent Kinyarwanda, a local dialect spoken in Kigali. He belongs to the ethnic group Tutsis in Rwanda.
Jean Bosco comes from a poor family of musicians. The once vibrant city of Kigali used to ring with street music. Now, it is eerily silent. The government has banned street music.
The government, led by Paul Kagame, is worried that music can be used as a medium of communication and freedom of expression for the youth in Rwanda.
Chapter 2
Jean Bosco earns his pocket money by selling Rwandan English newspapers. He sells them on the street corner in downtown Kigali.
He is an avid reader. He is most interested in reading articles in his favorite newspaper, the East African Daily.
His aim in life is to become foreign affairs correspondent of the East African Daily. The print version has the highest readership in Rwanda.
Sadly, Jean Bosco can’t afford a formal high school education. But he is luckier than many. He is enrolled in journalism classes. The European Union pays for them there in Kigali.
A journalist from the European Union interviewed him. The journalist recognized a spark in Jean Bosco. The journalist knew he was willing to work hard to make a better life for himself.
Chapter 3
Jean Bosco has made friends with two other students at the journalism school: Gibson and Roger. They discuss many issues that matter to them. Issues like unemployment and the upcoming presidential election.
The three of them are animatedly discussing the unemployment issue and the upcoming presidential election in Rwanda. They are discussing the EU observers who will be visiting. These European representatives are coming to make sure the elections are fair.
Jean Bosco thinks that the EU observers must cover all of Rwanda and not just the suburbs of Kigali.
Gibson warns Jean Bosco to be careful about what he says. Kigali is full of government informers. No one knows who might be listening.
These are people who are sympathetic to the government. They believe the government is already honest and the elections will be fair.