Description
A cheeky, fun and fast-moving tale of two Lebanese-Australian kids who decide to escape their horrible babysitter by running away… to the other side of the world.
Huda's sitting in the airport lounge, fiddling with our tickets. I can tell she's excited because she has a little smile on her face and she keeps glancing at her pink digital watch. I can't believe we're doing this. I can't believe we're running away from home. Well, we're not really running away. We'll come back. We're running to our parents. On the other side of the world.
When their parents have to travel to Beirut unexpectedly, twelve-year-old Akeal and his six siblings are horrified to be left behind in Melbourne with the dreaded Aunt Amel as their babysitter. Things do not go well, and Akeal's naughty little sister, Huda, hatches a bold plan to escape. After stealing Aunt Amel's credit card to buy plane tickets to Lebanon, Huda persuades her reluctant favourite brother to come with her. So begins Huda and Akeal's hair-raising and action-packed journey to reunite with their parents half a world away, in a city they've grown up dreaming about but have never seen.
A fresh and funny story of sibling love, adventure and courage, Huda and Me is one of a kind.
Review
Set in Melbourne, Akeal’s family of seven siblings are thrown into turmoil when their Tayta falls ill in Lebanon.
Mum and Dad leave the horrified siblings behind in the care of the awful Aunt Amel, who quickly treats them like her own personal servants… Things are not going well at all!
Akeal’s ever confident nine-year-old sister Huda has had enough, and takes matters into her own hands, booking them plane tickets to Lebanon. But can they really travel half way across the globe to their parents who will make everything alright?
This is a wonderful adventure with themes of culture, discrimination, siblings and family, and determination. These are some deep topic but handled lightly, and with good outcomes, that make it a terrific novel for readers 9 - 13 years old.
Reviewed by Rob
