Aaliyah is thirteen years old and loves spending time with her best friends, Sukhi and Lisa, and listening to her favourite K-pop band 3W, so when her parents allow her to go to their concert with her friends, she is incredibly excited. However, a terrorist bombing during the concert changes everything: Aaliyah and her friends make it out unharmed but then Lisa's brother, Darren, arrives and blames Aaliyah, yelling at her that all Muslims should go back to their own country. Understandably upset, Aaliyah runs away and eventually ends up at her uncle's house and, from there, her parents come to collect her.
Whilst Aaliyah is trying to come to terms with what has happened (both in terms of the bombing and the way Darren treated her), she finds life difficult. She is bullied at school simply for being Muslim and tensions are growing in the local area towards Muslims. Although she is scared, Aaliyah is determined to be a good Muslim and show pride in her identity, so begins to wear a hijab. However, then her school bans the wearing of any religious symbols and Aaliyah realises she is not the only one feeling isolated and discriminated against, but can they find a way to Fight Back?
Having found Boy, Everywhere an incredibly powerful book in its portrayal of what it's like to be a refugee, I was very excited to receive an early copy of Fight Back, and I most certainly wasn't disappointed as the book was everything I expected it to be and so much more. The story follows Aaliyah who is a normal teenager and gives us a unique insight into what it is like to be a Muslim growing up in England today and how the actions of Islamic terrorists affect them. I don't think I've ever read a book from this perspective and the messages it portrays are ones that need to be shared. It is incredibly honest and powerful in its messages and not in a sensational way; it is simply highlighting what life is like for children like Aaliyah and what they face on a regular basis, including crossing paths with the Far Right. I also liked the fact that Aaliyah's friends are form a range of different faiths and backgrounds, showing the effects the events in the book have on them as well. The empathy and respect they had for each other is just as important to highlight and was done so very well.
Having read the 'note from the author' that arrived with the book, I was unsurprised that the research was so harrowing to do. I read the book over the weekend of the fifth anniversary of the Ariana Grande bombing which felt poignant but sad - sad that events like this happen and that young children have to endure this treatment today. The book brought out a lot of very different emotions for me: reading of the bombing was upsetting but then Darren's reaction angered me. I wanted to hug Aaliyah on many occasions during the story, but the first time was absolutely Darren's reaction to her after they escape the venue. However, the most powerful emotion was how wrong this is: nobody should endure what Aaliyah does and I'm so pleased that AM Dassu decided to write Fight Back. It's a powerful story of family, friendship, finding yourself and learning how to stand up for what is right. It's about supporting each other and acceptance, but most of all it's about hope: hope that one day we will all be able to live in harmony; hope that children will one one day be able to live without prejudice and hope that children will be able to find their identity in their own way, without fear. Fight Back will undoubtedly be an important book in making that possible and I am very much looking forward to sharing and discussing the book in school with my students.
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