Heading: Section 3
Name: Swati Sharma
Book: Homeless Bird
Author: Gloria Whelan
Pages Discussed: Chapter 7-9

Chandra comes home for the funeral of Sassur and tells Koly all about her successful marriage. Chandra is very happy with her new marriage. Koly tells Chandra she wants to run away and Chandra pleads her not to since there will be no one to take care of Sass. Chandra goes home and life returns to normal for Koly and Sass. Sass has trouble with so little money and often sells Koly's belongings. One day, Sass tries to sell the Tagore book. Koly stops her by giving her the silver earrings in exchange for the book. Now Koly's only hope of escaping is gone. Suddenly, a letter comes from Sass' younger brother teeling her to come to Delhi to look after his children. Sass brings Koly along with her and they sell the house to pay for the trip. They reached Vrindavan and Sass gives 50 rupees to koly and leaves her. Koly walks through the streets of the city and watches the other widows find sleeping places on the street. An elderly woman calls to her from the steps of a house and tells her she will share the spot for the night. The people in the house are kind and do not make them leave, she says, and sometimes they hand out food. The old woman tells Koly that her husband's brothers brought her here, that widows are abandoned here every day. The rickshaw driver, Raji takes her to a place to live, where she meets a lady named Maa Kamala. She geta a job of stringing marigolds with Tanu (another widow). Raji doesn't know how to read ans so Koly decides to teach him.

The novel is based on the burden that India has on teenage girls. This main theme develops throughout the novel. Like girls in India, thirteen-year-old Koly must marry a man her parents choose. Her parents prepare Koly's dowry, and find a groom in the Mehta family. Koly then discovers that her husband-to-be is a sick and ill boy. His parents want her dowry for money only to save their son's life. When Koly's new husband, Hari dies, Koly knows that, in Indian culture, returning home as a widow would disgrace her family. Therefore, she must live with her in-laws. She is then forced to work for a living. After Sassur dies and Sass leaves Koly on her own, Koly has nowhere to go. There are new characters introduced in these three chapter, Raji (the rickshaw driver), Maa Kamala (owns the house widows live in), and Tanu (another widow, who soon becomes her friend). These characters will hopefully help and guide Koly through. I think that Raji and Koly might become more than just friends.