It’s been a while since i read a book that takes you back to the childhood, an early teen life; where friendships meant alot more than just few hours of gossip and talk with friends.
This book is about a 12 year old Courtney Parker who is devastated to leave her friends and South Africa behind and relocate to Saudi Arabia. To her, Jeddah feels like a different planet to Johannesburg. In spite of her initial reluctance to venture out of the comfort and security of the new home, she quickly forms friendships with Nizar Bukhari and Lana Alahmadi. However, not everyone is happy with the situation and she faces situations where she finds herself in tight spots and uncomfortable situations against the seemingly unforgiving culture and stand up to the bullies that are making her school life much more miserable than it is already. And making friends who seem like aliens in contrast to culture, language and style of living; seems a distant thing.But to her own surprise things seem to slowly settle and she does make friends with two girls, Nizar and Lana and they all together must try to overcome their family prejudices in order for their friendship to survive. The sweetness and so much real funny aspects of life, like that of Pete talking and assuming about Dinosaurs; a mother's efforts of making her daughter adjust and understand the situations in life and overall the intricate details of Courtney's life at school explained in depth which such a ease of flow and smoothness; makes this a good read. While it’s a perfect read for early teens and older children, this definitely is a welcoming read for anyone who has faced similar situations in life. The style and ease of writing is impeccable and narration is simply lovely, every scene feels like it's come to life before eyes.My Favorite part –‘Why would you want to tell me anything bad?’‘I don’t want to tell you anything bad. It’s just that I don’t know what’s bad in your opinion and what’s good.’ I took a mouthful of my juice. ‘OK, let’s say whenever I tell you something and you feel it’s bad, you just tell me it’s bad. That way, I won’t say anything that will offend you or anyone else.’‘That sounds good to me,’ she said, smiling.‘Deal?’‘Deal.’After recess, we walked to Seven B together and talked about the things that we had done while we weren’t talking to each other. Then she unexpectedly took my arm as we climbed down the stairs. I smiled and wrapped my arm around hers.Will they succeed? Will they be able to set aside their differences? Can they bridge the cultural divide? I might have just answered this part, but the warmness of their friendship and the talks that tug at heart; is such a welcoming one over Weekend!!
In short - "Girl of the Book" is a compelling, contemporary story that will get older children thinking. More than that, it is a story of friendship and forgiveness that will tug at your heart.
P.s - The eBook was provided for the review and i haven't been paid for doing the same. My opinions and my thoughts are my own !
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