Does My Head Look Big In This

Link to Amazon

In the life of a teenager there are many different things that are of great importance, but for many, defending their beliefs is not usually one of those things. This story follows the life of a young teenage girl, who has decided to wear a hijab all of the time. This creates some tension in her life as many people do not seem to agree with her choice. This story shows her bravery in standing up for what she believes in as well as many misconceptions that people may have about this culture.

This story would spark great discussion about how we treat others, as well as acceptance of people from cultures and belief systems different from our own. A book that would be a great companion to this one is ASK ME NO QUESTIONS, which follows the story of a young Muslim girl whose life is turned upside down after the events of 9/11. Both of these books bring up thought provoking discussion points, and would be great reads for high school students.

This book was reviewed by School Library Journal, an excerpt of the review follows:

Amal is smart, funny, outspoken, a good student, and a loyal friend. She is also a devout Muslim who decides to wear the hijab, or head covering, full-time. The story tells of her emotional and spiritual journey as she copes with a mad crush on a boy, befriends an elderly Greek neighbor, and tries to help a friend who aspires to be a lawyer but whose well-intentioned mother is trying to force her to leave school and get married. Amal is also battling the misconceptions of non-Muslims about her religion and culture. While the novel deals with a number of serious issues, it is extremely funny and entertaining, and never preachy or forced. 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, by the end of the story, she and readers come to realize that "Putting on the hijab isn't the end of the journey. It's just the beginning of it."—Kathleen E. Gruver, Burlington County Library, Westampton, NJ

Citation

Abdel-Fattah, R. (2006). Does my head look big in this?. London: Marion Lloyd Books.