Plot Summary
Amal is an Australian-Muslim-Palestinian teenager in the 11th grade of her Australian prep school. She faces criticism and concern from all sides when she decides to wear the hijab, the Muslim head scarf, full-time as a symbol of her beliefs.
Critical Analysis
Abdel-Fattah produces a brilliant debut as she weaves a sensitive tale concerning the trying of a young girl's faith with cutting wit and humor. When Amal first considers becoming a "full-timer" by wearing her hijab anytime she is in the presence of males who are non-family, the thought scares her so much it makes her "nostril hair stand on end." Amal is currently a "part-timer," meaning she only wears her hijab as part of the school uniform at an Islamic school, when attending mosque, or to cover up a bad hair day. Part of Amal's dilemma is that she is the only Muslim who attends McCleans Preparatory School. It is hard enough for a teenager to "fit in," and wearing a hijab full-time will make her stick out like a sore thumb.
Amal was born in Australia to Palestinian parents who were both born in Bethlehem, but currently have 52 years of Australian citizenship between them. They live in Camberwell, Australia, which is a suburb of Melbourne. Her dad is a doctor who drives a metallic red convertible while listening to Italian opera or Palestinian folk songs. Her mom is a dentist who is an obsessive clean freak. When Amal feels the need to start a fight with her mom, she purposefully leaves "microscopic crumbs on the kitchen counter, a towel on the bathroom floor, [or] an insect screen open." Amal thinks every teenager should say ""you're ruining my life" to their mother at least four times a week."
Like any teenager, Amal spends her time gauging her life's course through the popular magazines such as Glamour, Teen Vogue, Cosmo, Women's Weekly, and Us Weekly. She obsesses over boy bands and listens to music by various artists such as J. Lo, Justin Timberlake, Craig David, the Spice Girls, Aretha Franklin, Shania Twain, and Celine Dion. Her favorite pastime is going shopping at the mall. However, when she considers wearing her hijab full-time, this causes her to wonder if she has enough courage to wear it at the mall, let alone at school!
Arabic words in Does My Head Look Big in This? include "yallah" ("come on" or "hurry up"), "Assalamu Alaykom"/"Walkaykom Wassalam" (traditional greeting and response "Peace be upon you"), "wuduh" (ablution--wetting of hands, face, arms, feet, and crown of head before prayer), "fajr" ("prayer"), "Inshallah" ("God willing"), "Mashallah" ("God be praised"), "Mabruk" ("Congratulations"), "Ramadan" (month of fasting from dawn until dusk), "Eid al-Fitr" ("Festival of Breaking the Fast"), "Kola San Winta Bikhair" ("May every year bring you happiness"), and "Eid Mubarak" ("Happy Eid").
Amal is perturbed that some people think there is a "Muslim appearance." A Muslim can be dark-skinned or light-complected; be any shape or size; and have brown, black, blonde, brunette, or a variation of colored hair which can be curly or straight. Once a teacher did not believe that Amal was Muslim because she had light hair and green eyes. There is no "one look" for a Muslim.
Some of Amal's favorite foods are pizza; mango, strawberry, and pistachio gelatos; mud cake; strawberry shortcake; and fat-free hot chocolate. Other foods mentioned include "mansaf," which is rice mixed with pieces of chicken and pine nuts; hot yogurt soup; "fatoosh," which is a salad topped with pieces of bread dipped in olive oil; pickled cucumbers; radishes; chilis; minced meat pastries; "warak aneb," which are vine leaves stuffed with spicy rice; "makloba," which is a spicy rice dish with pieces of marinated lamb, fried cauliflower, and egg plant; sliced potatoes and chicken breasts covered in hot cream, garnished with tarragon leaves and fried pine nuts; and tomatoes and zucchini stuffed with rice which is cooked in tomato paste with minced meat. Muslims avoid eating pork. When eating out, a devout Muslim must make sure the dishes do not contain pork or come in contact with pork. For example, in Does My Head Look Big in This? a restaurant manager is asked if a separate cutting board was used when slicing the pork and the lamb.
Muslims practice their faith in varying degrees. Amal's aunt and uncle are on one end of the spectrum by ordering pizza with extra ham. Amal is on the other end of the spectrum by choosing to "wear a badge of [her] faith" by her own free choice. Does My Head Look Big in This? is set in 2002, around the first anniversary of 9/11. News reports in Australia constantly surround the anniversary of the terrorist attack on the U.S. and a recent attack in Bali. She faces hostility from friends and foes alike because she is labeled a "terrorist," "towel-head," "diaper-head," and "camel jockey" when she starts wearing her hijab full-time. She is able to find an inner strength and purpose for standing up for her beliefs. People of all faiths can commend Amal for her bravery in choosing to face persecution for her beliefs with strong resolve.
All readers can relate to feeling peer-pressure when deciding whether or not to stand up for one's beliefs. Amal was true to herself and her beliefs. She didn't let the judgment of others stop her from following her faith. Amal's struggles and triumphants can be an inspiration to others to stand tall in spite of the taunting of others. What matters is not what others say about you but what you know to be true about yourself.
Awards and Honors
Australian Book Industry Awards, 2006 Australian Book of the Year for Older
Children
Best Children's Books of the Year, 2008 Bank Street College of Education; New
Beginnings: Life in a New Land
Booklist Top 10 First Novels for Youth, 2007 Booklist
Booklist Top 10 Religion Books for Youth, 2007 American Library Association
Books Useful for Therapists, 2005 Australian Family Therapists
Capitol Choices, 2008 The Capitol Choices Committee
Children's Book Sense Picks, Summer 2007 American Booksellers Association
Kirkus Best Young Adult Books, 2007 Kirkus
Notable Book, 2006 Children's Book Council
West Australian Young Readers' Book Award (WAYRBA), 2006 Nominee
White Ravens Award, 2006 Winner Australia International
Review Excerpts
“One thing readers will gain from this book is knowledge of self-love and an appreciation of their culture." ~ Lacrisa Darby, Children's Literature, November 2010
"As Amal struggles with her identity in a post-9/11 world (“Do you have any idea how it feels to be me, a
"Determined to prove she's strong enough to "wear a badge of my faith," Amal faces ostracism and ridicule as she dons her hijab with both good humor and trepidation. Wearing the hijab full-time shuts some doors, but opens others for Amal as she emerges a bright, articulate heroine true to herself and her faith." ~ Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 2007
Other Books Written by Randa Abdel-Fattah
Where the Streets Had a Name
Ten Things I Hate About Me
The Friendship Matchmaker Goes Undercover
Visit her website for more information: http://www.randaabdelfattah.com/index.asp.
Book Connections
My Name is Bilal by Asma Mobin-Uddin and illustrated by Barbara Kiwak
Celebrating Ramadan = Ramaodaan Al-mu Aozozam by Diane
Hoyt-Goldsmith and illustrated by Lawrence Migdale
Muslim Child: A Collection of Short Stories and Poems by Rukhsana Khan and
illustrated by Patty Gallinger with sidebars by Irfan Alli
Connection Activities
- "In the book Amal makes a list of all the reasons why she should wear the
hijab. Discuss with the class what they would have done if they had been inAmal’s position. Divide the class into 2 groups for a class debate. Choose 2students to be the adjudicators. Topic: That Amal should wear the hijab toschool."
- "Write about a time in your own life when you felt discriminated against
because you were different from the people around you. Now write abouta time when you have discriminated against someone because they weredifferent from you. What feelings motivated you to discriminate againstanother? What feelings motivated others to discriminate against you? How arethese feelings similar or different?"
Awesome review and the topic is very relevant to todays classroom!! And I like you included web sites for more information. Is this a true story? If not, it surely could be. I love both of your Connection Activities and would use both!! Great job!
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