Brief summary
For 10-year-old Yasmin Shah, living in a small house with so many loud family members means she struggles to find her own voice. Life is difficult for Yasmin, and it’s only made more so with the arrival of Levi the Cockney llama, who haphazardly tries to help Yasmin find her own identity.
My comments
This book deals with the pressures and power dynamics that can play out at home behind closed doors, leading children to feel anxious about their progress at school. Yasmin’s parents mean well, and they only want the best for her, but in doing so, stifle her identity and pile pressure onto the shoulders of someone who shouldn’t have to carry that burden at such a young age. In that regard, this book would certainly resonate with many children who find similarities between Yasmin’s parents and their own, and it should make a welcome addition to the class library of any classroom.
Although children of Yasmin’s age are probably more likely to find themselves dealing with similar familial pressures, Annabelle Sami has written this book in such a way that it is easily accessible to children of a much younger age. In her capacity as the narrator of the book, she occasionally speaks directly to the reader to explain things, much in the same way that a teacher would stop to explain things as they come up whilst reading to the class. She is clear and concise in her explanations, but also incredibly funny. If you have ever read a Terry Pratchett book, you’ll recognise Annabelle Sami’s ability to step out of the narration, provide a laugh-out-loud moment of exposition, and then jump straight back into the story.
Llama Out Loud! is set in Whitechapel, London, so the settings aren’t supposed to leap off the page in the same way that a book heavy on fantasy elements would. However, it’s quite clear that Annabelle Sami has lived and breathed the settings that she writes. They often include funny little details that can only come from really being there, and vividly describe the commotion and life that runs through places like busy London markets. Furthermore, the book contains wonderful illustrations by Allen Fatimaharan throughout, and these provide an extra layer of rich detail that perfectly accompanies the text.
‘Come on girl, are you gonna let them punish you for nothing?’ Levi scrabbled up from the depths of the pocket. ‘Stand up for yourself! You deserve to be heard.’
Annabelle Sami
The book is heavily centred around two main characters, Yasmin Shah and Levi the Cockney Llama. Yasmin makes for a great role model for children reading the book; she doesn’t always get things right, but she tries hard and works to overcome her own personal barriers. Particularly heartwarming is her relationship with Gilly in the Octogenarians’ London Day Centre. I have a love/hate relationship with Levi; he is genuinely funny, and his misguided attempts at interventions in Yasmin’s life tend to come from a good place, but his actions continually get Yasmin into trouble meaning I often ended up feeling sorry for her.
Annabelle Sami also manages to weave lots of motivational phrases into the story, written as natural sounding speech between characters, especially Ezra, who features more as the book progresses. The phrases don’t feel forced, but they’re noticeably there, which I think is great for children to read as they’ll no doubt internalise those positive messages.
Class comments
I’d like to give Egmont a big thank you for sending me this book. I’m looking forward to adding this book to my class library in August and will update this section when a few of the children have read it.
Themes
- The path to belonging, and finding and expressing one’s own identity.
- Overcoming personal barriers.
- The pressures and power dynamics of family.
Curricular links
- East London (local area study).
- Emotional literacy (health and wellbeing).
- The learning pit (health and wellbeing).
Points to consider in class
- Nothing stands out to me that would be a major issue in class.
- Yasmin can get quite upset and feel like her parents don’t care about her.
- Yasmin does not speak, so bear this in mind if you have a child with selective mutism or similar.
