Module 2

Abdel-Fattah, Randa. 2007. DOES MY HEAD LOOK BIG IN THIS? New York: Scholastic Inc. ISBN 139780439922333

Amal, a sixteen year old Australian-Muslim-Palestinian girl decides she will begin wearing the hijab fulltime as a badge of her faith. With that decision comes the reactions and questions of her parents, friends, teachers, and even some of the people in public places. Adding to her concern is the normal trials and events of being a teenager, looking attractive and fashionable, shopping at the mall, being accepted, having a boyfriend, reading Cosmo magazine, and phone conversations with her girlfriends. She is picked on at school for being religious and looking different. World events complicate her decision with the head covering when she says, “How naïve I was to ever think that I could find my place in my country and be unaffected by the horrors and politics in the world.” After attending a party with friends she states, “No one is free from prejudice, I guess.” Amal befriends Mrs. Vaselli, a difficult old Greek woman who lives next door whom she learns is lonely and estranged from her son. Amal becomes the catalyst to restore the mother/son relationship. She deals with her friend, Simone’s serious self-image problems, and her friend Leila’s parents who what her to be married more than educated. Through the experiences Amal acknowledged that “Putting on the hijab isn’t the end of the journey. It’s just the beginning of it.” She is challenged to embrace her identity as a young teenage girl coming of age.

The basis of this story is Amal’s journey to find her identity by choosing to wear the hijab fulltime. While she possesses a maturity toward her faith and beliefs, she fears if she can handle the taunts and prejudice of others. Along the way Amal will deal with others views of Islam, set against terrorism, having a place of prayer in school, fasting, religion and dating relationships, and sexism in the Muslim community. There is the struggle with her friend running away because of the friend’s difficult relationship with her mother. And there is the cranky old neighbor that Amal befriends. Author Abdel-Fattah introduces several complicated aspects to this story, but she is able to balance this thoughtful journey toward maturity with humor and teenage issues that any young reader can identify with like eating pizza, reading magazines, phone conversations, going to the mall, and shopping for stylish scarves.

This book takes a serious look at ethnicity through the eyes of a teenage girl. The names are authentic such as Amal Mohamed Narullah Abdel-Hakim and the Chadstone Shopping Centre is an actual location in Australia. The dialogue seems easy and natural to the teenage characters. Details are provided by the main character on how to put on the scarf as a head covering and wear it. Customs and sexism is revealed through Amal’s friend Leila as her brother is given preferential treatment simply because he is male, while the mother dictates to her daughter how she is to behave. The brother does drugs, drinks, and dates unseemly women while Leila is not permitted to have a birthday dinner celebration at a restaurant with her girlfriends. School Library Journal reports, "The details of Amal's family and social life are spot-on, and the book is wonderful at showing the diversity within Muslim communities and in explaining why so many women choose to wear the hijab."

The present day fear against terrorism is an issue that Amal encounters. This glimpse of the current political struggles in the world adds to the realism of the story. The reader learns of Amal arising at dawn to pray with her parents, her fasting, and seeking out a prayer place at her school adds to the authenticity. Outsiders to the Muslim beliefs have a sense of the meaning and demands of the faith through Amal’s character. It is an educational read using Amal’s cultural dilemmas that can be translated across cultural barriers for any reader who searches to know themselves. Booklist says, “…the funny, touching contemporary narrative will grab teens everywhere.” The author uses the Muslim teenage voice which is one that has not been heard, yet she also enables the reader to enter the world of the average teenage Muslim girl and see the ordinary struggles of adolescence. Horn Book Magazine writes, "Though the lengthy analysis on everything from female body image to Palestinian food give the book more message than momentum, the girls' thoughts and dreams are authentically adolescent, providing a bridge between cultures." The author is careful to never tell the reader what to think, but through the careful, detailed construction of characters allows the reader to come to their own conclusions.



Korman, Gordon. 2002. SON OF THE MOB. New York: Hyperion Paperbacks.
ISBN 0-7868-1593-0

Gordan Korman’s SON OF THE MOB tells the story of Vince Luca, a teenager whose family has “a reputation in law enforcement circles.” The storyline offers chuckles and laugh out loud adventures. Publishers Weekly says it is, “Funny and unexpectedly affecting.” Vince realized at a young age his family was not like other families. His older brother, Tommy explained, “Dad’s mobbed up.” Vince mistakenly believed when younger that it meant his dad had a lot of friends. As the brothers grow into adolescence Tommy quits school to join the business, but Vince wants no part of it. Yet he keeps finding himself drawn into it despite his best efforts. The story begins with Vince discovering an unconscious body in his Mazda Protégé trunk on a date. Along the way the reader learns about diamonds hidden in his snack of Cracker Jacks, money discovered by preschool children stuffed in his jacket pockets, a 16th birthday gift of a stolen Porsche, and a delivery of cookies to the school that turns out to be “hot” watches. The Luca’s home is bugged by the FBI and all conversations must occur in the basement where his dad’s woodworking hobby drowns out their conversations.

Vince meets his first love, Kendra Bightly, whose dad is an FBI agent. Through a series of comedic events she becomes convinced that Vince is a loan shark. He says, “In the golden age of screw-ups, this will make the top-ten list. And the sad part is…there’s still nothing I can do about it.” Relationships become complicated as Vince tries to prevent Kendra from learning the truth about his family. In time he makes a discovery about his father, the mob boss, “Sure, I knew he was behind a lot of criminal activity, but I never thought he was intrinsically rotten. Until today.” But the father becomes just as exasperated with his son as he tells him, “You’re like crabgrass! Every time I turn around, you’re in another part of the lawn!” Vince’s brother, Tommy, who dropped out of school to work in the family business, begins using a website Vince created as a class requirement, for illegal activity. And then there are the uncles, lots of uncles: Uncle Fingers, Uncle Puke, Uncle Shank, Uncle Fin, Uncle Pampers, Uncle Exit, Uncle Big-Nose and Uncle No-Nose. Vince’s mother, portrayed as trying to be June Cleaver plays a surprising role in the story. At the end, Vince manages to find warm feelings for his Dad and refers to the breakthrough as a “Hallmark moment” to know his Dad really cares. Family and love manage to triumph, even if the family happens to be mobsters.

Korman has written a delightfully funny book. The characters are well developed and believable. The protagonist, Vince, struggles with common problems of growing up: a best friend, finding and keeping a girl friend, getting a car, athletics at school, is planning for college, and coming of age and standing up for one’s values and beliefs. Of course the idea of having a mob family lends the story twists and turns along the way with unique problems and adventures. Booklist calls it, “An expertly plotted escapade.”

But underlying the humor are themes about truth, friendship, and family relationships. Korman keeps the pace of the story moving with one adventure after another. According to The Horn Book it is, “A fast-paced, tightly focused story.” The dialogue and humor are never forced but flow seamlessly throughout. While the family belongs to the mob, the reader is able to identify and sympathize with their problems thanks to Korman’s rich descriptions. The style of writing results in a very readable book that is fun from the first page to the last.


Sonnenblick, Jordan. 2004. DRUMS, GIRLS & DANGEROUS PIE. New York: Scholastic Inc.
ISBN 0-439-75520-4

DRUMS, GIRLS & DANGEROUS PIE introduces us to Steven, a thirteen year old who describes himself as a skinny geek, with mouse-brown cowlick-y hair, glasses an inch thick and braces making his mouth look like a train wreck. In contrast, his brother, Jeffrey, who is eight years younger, has perfect teeth, 20-20 vision, and little blond ringlets. The younger brother idolizes Steven. Following an accidental fall early one morning, Jeffrey is taking to the emergency room, and it is discovered the little boy is sick with leukemia. Steven views himself as Jeffy’s protector and will come to realize the full meaning of the label. Things begin to change for the Alger family. The mother must resign her job as a teacher to care for Jeffrey, financial problems beset the family, Steven’s grades begin to suffer in school as he deals with the sickness of his brother, and there are the frequent absences of the mother and Jeffrey as they visit the hospital out of town. Family emotions cause Steven to miss the companionship of his parents. He comes to see how the situation is affecting his parents, he thinks his mother looks older and tired, he sees his dad cry with worry of the hospital bills, and overhears angry words between his parents related to Jeffrey’s cancer. In trying to fix the problem, Steven makes promises to God. Drumming was his big escape. As the story unfolds, Steven must acknowledge his brother’s illness. He tells the counselor at school “…I can’t change all the ROOTS of the problems. I can’t change the basic situation.” She leaves him with something to think about, “Instead of agonizing about the things you can’t change, why don’t you try working on the things you CAN change?” Steven struggles to accept the unfairness of what has happened to his brother. In a touching moment, Steven shaves his head to give morale support to Jeffrey. Steven meets a girl, Samantha, at the hospital where his brother gets treatments and learns she too has cancer. It is a brief friendship that will have a lasting impression on the teen. He makes a promise to her that he will always be there for his brother. Steven’s school band has a fundraiser for Jeffrey to fulfill community service hours. The relationships and experiences grow Steven from a boy into a young man.

This is a poignant story that captures the emotional ups and downs of a family in crisis with a seriously ill child. Kirkus Reviews notes it is, “Readable and raw and heartrending…hysterically funny as well.” The plot revolves around the daily activities of the family and how the ordinary, everyday activities change as the medical needs of the child move to the forefront. The characters grow and change as they cope with this unexpected tragic circumstance. They are not portrayed as perfect but as individuals challenged to deal with a situation beyond their experiences, learning as they go. Fear, courage and perseverance are uniquely displayed in each character. This book may not be for everyone for there are points where it loses a bit of momentum as the medical procedures are described in detail. But for those who have lived the experience or known someone who has, this is the reality of dealing with this type of situation. The story is told through the protagonist, Steven’s English journal. Multiple themes surface such as finding encouragement in unexpected places as Steven did with Samantha, making sacrifices and serving others, persevering through trials, communication, family relationships, and working with professionals. It is a touching story that makes the reader appreciate the present not knowing what tomorrow may hold. Booklist says, “Sonnenblick shows that even in the midst of tragedy, life goes on, love can flower, and the one thing you can always change is yourself.”