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Which One Is Malala? book review

Which One is Malala? Reviewed by Patrycja, 13

On the book’s cover we can see a brunette girl with sad, but twinkling brown eyes. She makes an impression of a troubled, anxious and confused teenager. Who is she? That’s Malala Yousafzai – the world’s youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner, who was rewarded it for fighting for the righteousness for all children to get an education. She received it in 2014 at the age of 17. She also won the Shorty Award for Teen Hero in 2015, and in 2016 — she became the youngest Knight to ever win the Order of the Smile, which is an international prize first established in 1968 by a Polish magazine, and officially recognized in 1979. She spoke out publically on behalf of girls and their right to learn which made her a target. Unwilling of her and her actions, a Taliban man, Ehsanullah Ehsan, shot her in the head, along with two girls sitting behind her, in 2012 as she was on her way to home on a bus. Malala is taken to the hospital and this is where the story begins. She had to go through many months of surgeries and rehabilitation. The girl shows courage, bravery and determination. She is the author of a blog in which she describes her and her peers everyday life, and the fact that the Taliban took away girls’ right to have an education. It’s a touching story, that shows if you are ambitious enough to do something, you can accomplish it. The Taliban wanted to quiet down Malala by stopping her once and for all, but instead, it made the whole world listen to her. She received tons of moving letters and incredible gifts from politicians, like Barack Obama, to well-known singers, like Beyoncé. What undoubtedly astonished her was that Madonna dedicated a song to her! Nothing stopped Malala from sharing to the world the truth about the Taliban, even if it meant risking her own life.This story is very encouraging, and it proves that if you fight for what is right, you will achieve it. Malala is a wise, and tenacious girl, who besides her young age is a person with remarkable fearlessness, strength, responsibility and intelligence. Currently she is 22 years old. It is quite hard to rate this book. It is devastating and worrisome that situations like this one are taking place every day in this world. But this one happened to have gotten notably acknowledged. There are sentences in this book that are certainly hair-raising and gripping. It is a book that I exceptionally recommend, because it has to be more broadly known that some children get banned from watching TV, going to school and playing music. It is assuredly worth getting to know Malala and her story. The illustrations in this book are f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c! Maciej Szymanowicz’s drawings in my opinion look spectacular. They marvelously complete the story and give an fascinating look into the place where Malala was born (Mingora, Pakistan) using lively maps. At the end of the book we can find a brief biography of Malala Yousafzai with an actual photo of her, and also additional information about her anonymous blog. I rate this book 9/10! Which One is Malala? by Renata Piątkowska (Author), Maciej Szymanowicz (Illustrator), Katarzyna Wasilkowska (Translator), 2019. Get a copy here (free on Kindle unlimited) and support Stone Soup in the process!