Book Summary: Little Princes

Book Summary: Little Princes: One Man’s Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal by Connor Grennan

‘Little Princes’ is a true story based on Connors real life experiences in Nepal. His visit to the war-torn country would be his first destination in a year-long journey around the world. Bored with his job, Connor sets off on the journey seeking to for adventure by volunteering to help people in need. Connor’s experiences in Nepal turn out to be life-changing for him. In Nepal Connor is scheduled to contribute his time as a volunteer at the Little Princes Orphanage. All the children in the orphanage are supposedly orphans but as Connor soon discovers, most of them are in fact not orphans. These children actually have families. The children in the orphanage whose parents are alive were taken away from their families by child traffickers who claimed that they would provide protection for the children. Conner is touched by the plight of these children. He commits to reunite the children with their families. This is not going to be an easy task and it places the life of Connor in grave danger.

Connor could never have planned his Nepal experience as it turns out to be. Never in his wildest imaginations did Connor think that volunteering could be so life-changing. Connor’s three months of volunteering have a significant effect on his life. One can even see the transformation that Connor goes through from reading the book. In the beginning of the book, Connor comes out as an arrogant person. This however changes with time as Connor becomes more attached to and fond of the children. He becomes so attached and committed to the children that he is very reluctant to leave them. Had he not booked a ticket to Thailand earlier on, Connor would have preferred to stay with the children. Leaving the children is a quite challenging for Connor and his promise to return to Nepal in a year’s time gives both the children and himself a glimmer of hope.

As he promised, Connor returns to Nepal to volunteer again. He learns that mothers of the children have shown up looking for their children. Most of the children believed that their parents were dead and were pleasantly surprised to be reunited with their parents. Connor is quite pleased to learn that his efforts have borne fruit and feels very responsible.

Connor returns to New Jersey but has a difficult time readjusting to life in the big cities. His heart is still attached to the children and he wants to do something more significant for them. Receiving sad news about one of the children encourages Connor even more in his quest to do something significant for the children. Connor starts a non-profit organization called Next Generation Nepal. The organization’s mission is to reunite children in Nepal who have been separated by traffickers from their families.

Connor’s book highlights the difficult lives that children and their families face in Nepal at the hands of child traffickers. The book also highlights the efforts of volunteers such as Connor aimed at reuniting children with their families. The book has great lessons about love, respect, humility and service for humanity.