Frizzy Haired Zuzu

by Medeia Sharif, Basma Hosam (Illustrator)

Overview

Zuzu loves riding her bike and dancing to all kinds of music. Her curly red hair bounces when she dances.

But Zuzu hates her hair. The older she gets, the bigger it grows. With her sisters and mother, she tries several hilarious—yet disastrous—solutions to tame her frizzy hair. Finally she saves up all her money to visit a salon. But with straighter hair, will she still feel like herself? Zuzu must dig deep down to sort out her feelings about what is beautiful to others . . . and herself.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433841576
Publisher:	Magination Press, American Psychological Association
Publication date:	10/03/2023
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,673,928
Product dimensions:	8.25(w) x 10.25(h) x (d)
Age Range:	7 - 8 Years

About the Author

Medeia Sharif received her master’s degree in psychology from Florida Atlantic University. She is a public school teacher and the author of Remembering Mom’s Kubbat Halab. She lives in Miami, Florida. Visit medeiasharif.com and @medeiasharif on Instagram.

Basma Hosam graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts in Cairo. She has illustrated over 30 books, including Al Anatekh Kingdom which received the Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature in 2022. She has worked with Oxford University for an Arabic language project and is also the author-illustrator of Something Searching for Himself. She lives in Cairo, Egypt.
 

Editorial Reviews

2023-09-09
Zuzu dislikes her voluminous, frizzy red hair.

In a quest to help Zuzu get rid of her curls, her cousin, sister, and mother all attempt various methods that only exacerbate the situation. Ultimately, she decides to spend the money she’s saved from her allowance and her birthday on a trip to the salon, where her hair is straightened. This transformation leaves her feeling unlike herself, however, and she finds herself annoyed when her friends compliment her new look. As Zuzu goes home, it begins to rain, and, knowing what happens when her hair becomes wet, she starts to dance rather than running inside. Her hair is big and curly once more, and Zuzu is thrilled. The book’s beautiful, sometimes whimsical cartoon illustrations skillfully depict the unsuccessful endeavors to reduce Zuzu’s hair volume and capture her emotions in response. The tale offers an important message—that kids should love and accept themselves wholeheartedly—but Zuzu’s shift in perspective feels abrupt, and it isn’t clear why she’s suddenly learned to embrace her locks. Street signs in Arabic are interspersed throughout, many women are depicted wearing headscarves, and in an author’s note, Sharif states that she drew inspiration from her Iraqi Kurdish mother’s childhood.

A brief but joyful story of a girl coming to terms with her unique hair. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews