Title: 11 Words For Love
Author: Randa Abdel-Fattah
Illustrator: Maxine Beneba Clarke
Published: September 2022
Publisher: Hachette
Readership: Children’s Picturebook
Rating: ★★★★★
RRP: $24.99
I received a copy of 11 Words For Love from the publishers for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
A moving and joyful book for children from all backgrounds about the many ways we love, from award-winning author Randa Abdel-Fattah and acclaimed illustrator Maxine Beneba Clarke.
There are eleven words for love, and my family knows them all.
A family flees their homeland to find safety in another country, carrying little more than a suitcase full of love.
As their journey unfolds, the oldest child narrates 11 meanings for love in Arabic as her family show, and are shown, all different kinds of love in their new home, and they also remember the love they have for their homeland and for those left behind or lost along the way.
In the Arabic language, there are over 50 words describing the degrees of love. That’s 50 stories, 50 life-worlds. This lyrical and heartwarming book takes you on a journey through 11 of these Arabic expressions for love.
Happy Book Birthday to this gorgeous picturebook.
This beautiful book celebrates some of the many ways to say and show love in Arabic as a family flees their homeland to seek safety in another country. The family show, and are shown, love in many different ways throughout the book, and the book is narrated by the oldest child.
I loved that each page has the Arabic words and the English translation – dual language picturebooks are so important for children to have access to and open up many opportunities for discussions and compassion. I had no idea there were so many ways to say/show love in Arabic (there are over 50 words!) and so I learnt something incredibly valuable from the book. The illustrations are bright, bold, warm and inviting and are deeply engaging. It’s a picturebook everyone should have on their shelf.
Noveltea Corner 