Princila Murrell

A great children’s story about Courtney Parker, a twelve year old girl from South Africa, who is up rooted from her familiar surroundings and life when her Dad takes up the offer of a new job in Saudi Arabia. This is a lovely story of how children from different cultures struggle to understand and come to terms with their differences. Courtney struggles to find friends and to understand the language and her school life becomes challenging when her only friend stops talking to her. My only issue is about the referencing. I am not sure if a child would understand the language used when explaining the meaning; but it would certainly open up conversation about religion and culture differences. Nicely written.… (meer)

This book is written well. It tells the story of a white Christian South African girl who moves to Saudi Arabia at the age of 12. Her father was relocated for his job.
This story is told from 3 points of view:
Courtney: main character
Nizar: Saudi Arabian boy (Courtney's Neighbor)
Lana: classmate of Courtney (Muslim-foreign)
Courtney attends a school for foreigners. She befriends Lana who is unpopular amongst her peers. She also becomes friends with Nizar. She faces many difficulties due mostly to cultural differences.
This book is rather educational. It conveys cultural norms in a country many English-speaking people are probably unaware of. It puts a human face on Arab and Muslim people. Although Courtney has some issues with fitting in with her peers, she does meet people who are curious and friendly toward her.
I would probably categorize this book under young adult. Still, I think adults would find the content interesting.… (meer)