SHORTLISTED: 2022 CBCA Book of the Year, Younger Readers

Huda's sitting in the airport lounge, fiddling with our tickets. I can tell she's excited because she has a little smile on her face and she keeps glancing at her pink digital watch. I can't believe we're doing this. I can't believe we're running away from home. Well, we're not really running away. We'll come back. We're running to our parents. On the other side of the world.

When their parents have to travel to Beirut unexpectedly, twelve-year-old Akeal and his six siblings are horrified to be left behind in Melbourne with the dreaded Aunt Amel as their babysitter. Things do not go well, and Akeal's naughty little sister, Huda, hatches a bold plan to escape. After stealing Aunt Amel's credit card to buy plane tickets to Lebanon, Huda persuades her reluctant favourite brother to come with her. So begins Huda and Akeal's hair-raising and action-packed journey to reunite with their parents half a world away, in a city they've grown up dreaming about but have never seen.

A fresh and funny story of sibling love, adventure and courage, Huda and Me is one of a kind.

'An irresistible invitation to young readers to embrace a story that is familiar at times, and wonderfully fresh and new at others.' RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH

'One minute you're laughing out loud and the next you're wiping away a cheeky tear. Big adventure, big laughs and big heart.' NAT AMOORE

'Sparkling with mischief, adventure and family love, Huda and Me is a gem of a story.' KIRSTY MURRAY