SAMIRA SURFS

After fleeing Burma by boat, 11-year-old Samira and her Rohingya family are settling into their new life in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, in 2012.

Samira is glad she can help support her family by selling hard-boiled eggs on the nearby beach but longs to attend school. But even if they didn’t desperately need the money Samira contributes, her father believes that, given their future opportunities, education only benefits boys. Because the refugee camps for Rohingyas escaping brutal persecution are full, Samira and her family are unregistered people. Despite hoping for better treatment in a predominantly Muslim country, they must live outside the camp, are banned from formal employment, and find that some locals resent their presence. Samira misses her family back home and her best friend, whose whereabouts are unknown. She makes friends with a group of Rohingya and Bangladeshi surfers, and the announcement of a surfing contest with a cash prize motivates her to overcome her fear of the water and learn too; winning could prove to her family that girls, like boys, can change their families’ fortunes. Azim’s charming illustrations bring Samira’s world to life, showing the beauty of the natural surroundings and her childlike enthusiasm. This novel is peopled with layered, fully formed characters who experience trauma and triumph in equal measure. Samira’s internal growth and changing relationships are well plotted, and her narratorial voice is earnest and bold.

A compassionate and well-rounded picture of refugee life.