As someone I have great respect for, I had to remind myself to stay neutral and not praise this book on principle.

This is a biography of Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani education activist and youngest ever Nobel Prize winner, written in a way that children can understand. It covers her life in Pakistan, the assassination attempt in 2012 by the Taliban, and her recovery and awards afterwards.

I can’t fault the presentation of this book. The illustrations are full colour, and absolutely outstanding. The writing is well done, and despite the fact I am many years older than its target audience, it drew me in. The only slightly off note is that the text is part of the image and so cannot be resized, but it does work for the look for the book.

It is not a five for two very picky reasons. First, as she is still campaigning, a mention of Malala’s foundation would have been nice, and second, I like resizeable text.

Overall, it is ideal for children, an easy way to broach a difficult topic, and wonderfully written; this is a book I would highly recommend for children whether read alone or with their parents.