The Diddakoi

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Kizzy's themes include comments on the care system, tradition versus modernity, middle class snobbery (mostly from society busybody Mrs Cuthbert, Angela Browne's hairstyle and performance perhaps owing something to the then-Leader of the Opposition Margaret Thatcher?) and above all tolerance for - and indeed celebration of - difference and cultural diversity. The social commentary in this book is great and I liked the way Godden introduced a different culture in her book. She shows that not much has changed since the 70s (when this book was written): there are still the ignorant people who don't understand that there are different ways of being, and there are also the people who realize that different doesn't have to mean bad. According to this BBC article, Madonna, the American pop star, made comments in support of Gypsies and against the discrimination they face during a concert in Bucharest in Romania, although she was booed by the fans for her comments. Madonna explains Gypsy comments. Madonna paused during her two-hour show to say: “It has been brought to my attention, that there is a lot of discrimination against Romanies and Gypsies in general in Eastern Europe– it made me feel very sad. We don’t believe in discrimination, we believe in freedom and equal rights for everyone.”

Kizzy is a diddakoi, a half-gypsy. The other children taunt her and make her time at school miserable. But at home in their wagon with Gran and her horse, Joe, she is happy. But then Gran dies and her life is turned upside down. Their wagon is burned down and Kizzy is all alone. But in fact it is not only Kizzy's life that is turned upside down from this moment on. The rest of the story follows Kizzy through the following year and her problems with the so called respectable children. The story has a wonderful conclusion, perhaps some might find it a bit too fairytale but as a child I absolutely loved this. The end is a dream come true. She goes to the local school and is taunted and bullied. When the time comes Kizzy can't live with Gran anymore some disreputable family members come to take her. The sheer misery Kizzy undergoes demands a happy ending - sentimental and unlikely it may be but who would begrudge the battling little Kizzy a little happiness? Aimed squarely at the female half of the young audience Kizzy was one of the best-remembered 'weepies' among girls of that era.I first read this book when I was 9 or so and its memory has never left my mind. liked Kizzy, the little Diddakoi (Traveller) girl perhaps because I could subconsciously relate to some of her struggles, especially those of perceived foreignness when one is the only dark-skinned kid in the class. Now that I'm reading this book again as an adult, with all the experience I have regarding culture and such, I am quite amazed that this book which is a kids book would have so much social commentary, also it's now as an adult that I can understand the initial appeal the book held for me. Funny how that works. We see Caspar at school, taking a sports lesson. He is not good at sports, he does not have any kit, and he is bullied by the sports teacher, who behaves rather childishly. New for the 2022 Festival is a Kings Road Street party and Peddler’s Parade on Easter Saturday 16 April.

In the course of events, Kizzy’s guardian Gran dies and her gypsy caravan home is burnt down (in accordance with gypsy custom). There WILL be an examination – July 24th. (In today’s class, I said there would not be an examination: that was incorrect).

Kizzy is from a traveller family, she lives with her Gran in a wagon parked in the orchard of Admiral Twiss' country estate. urn:oclc:40190198 Republisher_date 20130925084811 Republisher_operator [email protected] Scandate 20130924013231 Scanner scribe6.shenzhen.archive.org Scanningcenter shenzhen Worldcat (source edition) Dan Allum and Jake Bowers from the Gypsy, Romany and Traveller communities are opening the festival on Friday 1 April in a series of events across the town. Jake’s sculpture of Kizzy will be unveiled in Gensing Gardens at 4pm along with outdoor art installations generated by an extensive schools festival workshop programme that artists have delivered over the last month, engaging 2000 children. This is funded by the festival’s Crowd Funder, Hastings Museum and Art Gallery funding, Chalk Cliff Trust, East Sussex Community Foundation, Arts Council England and Heritage Lottery Funding for the marking of #GensingGardens150 throughout the year. There's a slight air of preachiness in the story that was also fairly common in early- to mid-20th-century children's books, the era in which Godden would have grown up. But it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story; in fact the old-fashionedness of the book was part of its charm for me.

Kizzy‘s themes include comments on the care system, tradition versus modernity, middle-class snobbery and above all tolerance for – and indeed celebration of – difference and cultural diversity.

This is a lovely tale of pride of culture, collaborative community battling prejudice, love of horses and home, revealing the danger of ignorance and choosing to see only what you want to see. Bullying (mean girls for once rather than blaming all on boys!) is a core problem and how it is dealt with the main issue, with changing stubborn minds and reconciliation closely following. A sweet story, full of nature and the world from a child’s mind.

After reading it, I have always grown fond of characters and have come out enriched and with warm heart. I’ll be chairing the festival’s free Let’s talk About This Book event on Saturday 2 April 5-7pm also at Southwater Centre. It features Rumer Godden’s nephew, Simon Foster, and the two writers and journalists of Romany Heritage, Dan Allum and Jake Bowers. Dan Allum, from Cambridgeshire, who has previously abridged The Diddakoi for Radio 4 extra, will also be reading excepts from the book in Teddy Tinker’s free chapter reading events on Saturday 2 and Sunday 3 April at 3pm. A 1976 children’s television series, Kizzy was based on the award-winning children’s novel. One viewer, Nicolette Howard, remembers it well. “I didn’t come across the book, but that series was my defining childhood television experience. It made such an impact on me.” In the narrative, Admiral Twiss is criticised by the villageMadonna has said she was “compelled” to comment on the discrimination against Romany Gypsies while on stage in Romania, despite being booed by fans. The 51-year-old was jeered by the audience in Bucharest after saying the discrimination “made me feel very sad”. ..