
You Must Be Layla (Paperback)
Yassmin Abdel-Magied (author)Published: 06/02/2020
'If you want to invent something nobody has ever thought of before, you need to read the things that others don't read, look in the spaces other people are not in...'
Layla believes she was right to stand up for herself against a bully, but it's landed her a suspension - not the way she (or her parents) would have wished to begin her time at her fancy new school! This is just a setback though, and she's determined to prove that she does deserve her scholarship by making new friends and setting her sights on inventing something that could win the big robotics competition.
But where to begin?
You Must Be Layla introduces Sudanese-born author, broadcaster, social advocate and mechanical engineer Yassmin Abdel-Magied as an exciting new voice in children's writing.
Praise for You Must Be Layla:
'This warm, humorous account of a larger-than-life Sudanese girl navigating a posh Australian school is an engaging read' Guardian
'Fresh funny and empowering' BookTrust
'A one-of-a-kind bundle of comedy and compassion' LoveReading
Publisher: Penguin Random House Children's UK
ISBN: 9780241440490
Number of pages: 304
Weight: 213 g
Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 18 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
...this warm, humorous account of a larger-than-life Sudanese girl navigating a posh Australian school is an engaging read for 12-plus. * The Guardian *
I adored Layla's openness, her aptitude for shrugging off set-backs, taking suggestions on board and embracing change. As the You Must Be Layla title suggests, she's a one-of-a-kind heroine, and this funny, thought-provoking novel - the first children's book from inspirational Sudanese-born broadcaster, social advocate and mechanical engineer Yassmin Abdel-Magied - is a one-of-a-kind bundle of comedy and compassion. * Lovereading4kids *
Yassmin Abdel-Magied's You Must Be Layla is a tonic, and a terrific debut for 11+. Its narrator is (like its author) a Sudanese girl who has won a scholarship to a posh Australian school. Bossy, smart and brave, she has to face the students who have it in for her as the only Muslim. Underneath its buoyant humour is a timely wisdom about finding friends in an alien culture. * New Statesman *
Sudanese-Australian activist Abdel-Magied's first novel is the sparkling tale of 13-year-old Layla, who moves to a new school, where she is the only pupil to wear a headscarf. * inews *
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