Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Welcome, readers, to the imaginative brain of Omar! You might not know me yet, but once you open the pages of this book you'll laugh so hard that snot will come out of your nose (plus you might meet a dragon and a zombie - what more could you want?).

My parents decided it would be a good idea to move house AND move me to a new school at the same time. As if I didn't have a hard enough time staying out of trouble at home, now I've also got to try and make new friends. What's worse, the class bully seems to think I'm the perfect target.

At least Eid's around the corner which means a feast (YAY) and presents (DOUBLE YAY). Well, as long as I can stay in Mum and Dad's good books long enough...

The combination of Zanib Mian's hilarious text and Nasaya Mafaridik's fantastic cartoon-style illustrations make the PLANET OMAR series perfect for fans of Tom Gates and Wimpy Kid.

*Zanib Mian is a World Book Day author for 2021 with her Planet Omar title, Operation Kind .*

Chosen as the CBBC Book of the Month for June 2019.

Previously published as 'THE MUSLIMS', this was the winner of the Little Rebels Award in June 2018. The text has been revised, expanded with new scenes and re-illustrated.

Excerpt provided by Syndetics

Chapter 1 KHAATOOOO! There was a big puddle of spit on my little brother's forehead. It was mine. But, PHEW, he was still sleeping. Let me tell you what happened: I had been in my bed, attempting to have a good night's sleep, when suddenly I was being chased through the playground by a teacher who had GREEN SLIME OOZING out of his ears and slugs for fingernails! It was a dream. A BAD dream, of course. When I woke up, I was extremely happy that I wasn't about to be a monster's dinner. I breathed slowly to get my heartbeat back to normal, instead of like it was on a TRAMPOLINE. I remembered that my mom told me to spit toward my shoulder three times if I have a nightmare. That's supposed to get rid of SHAYTAN, who is the uglyhead who causes bad dreams. I REALLY wanted to get rid of Shaytan! So I conjured up a bucketful of spit in my mouth and SHOT it out over my left shoulder. THAT'LL TEACH HIM! I just hoped it would dry before morning so nobody would know I'd spat on my little brother by accident. I put my head back on the pillow for an eighth of a second, but then I heard a really loud and really annoying sound. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH! (See? VERY loud and VERY annoying.) It was Esa. I guess he'd noticed the spit ball after all and wasn't impressed. Mom appeared at the door to our room in her pajamas, looking all bleary-eyed. She said, "What's the matter, Esa?" Esa was still busy wailing, so I said, "Spit ball." "Not again, Omar!" "WAAAAAAAAAA!" I covered my head with the pillow. Then Dad came in saying that it would be nice if we could have AT LEAST 1 NIGHT in the week where poor Esa isn't woken up by my SHENANIGANS. I asked him what that means for the BILLIONTH time. He rolled his eyes for the BILLIONTH time. I heard my big sister, Maryam, growling in her room. (She definitely doesn't like mornings very much.) Mom said it was almost Fajr time anyway. I wondered if Allah was going to give me a reward for waking them up for Fajr. Chapter 2 The reason I had been having bad dreams, especially bad dreams about teachers, was because I was going to be starting at a new school. This made me feel like there were SNAKES IN MY TUMMY and some of them were sneaking up and squeezing my heart. I don't like things to change. It would be so much more convenient and better for everybody if things always just stayed the same. Take my pajamas, for example. They are utterly comfortable pajamas, which have somehow molded their shape to my body and become my second skin. A weird second skin that I can take off and put on, like some kind of cool human lizard. My mom tried to throw them away and make me wear crispy pajamas that DON'T EVEN HAVE DINOSAURS ON THEM. This is change. It's super annoying. One big, fat, huge change had already happened to me. We had to move, which is the reason I had to start at a new school. All this happened because Mom got her DREAM JOB. When she told me, I couldn't help wondering what she meant exactly by DREAM JOB. Did it mean that adults have super-boring dreams all about jobs? If that was true, I wasn't looking forward to being an adult, because at the moment I dream about fun stuff, like being on a ROLLER COASTER that turns into a FLYING PIG. Sometimes, they're even better than movies! Well, apart from the scary ones that make me feel really lucky when I wake up and realize they're not for real. So, anyway, the job that Mom must have dreamed about all the time was too far from where we lived before, so we had to move. The moving bit was VERY, VERY, X 100 ANNOYING because Dad said I couldn't put all the 1,267 important things from my room in the boxes to take to the new house. He didn't actually count my things, but he likes to say exact numbers when he is talking so he can sound smart. He said I had to choose the ones I love most and give the rest to charity. Why didn't he understand that I LOVE THEM ALL? But then he said he would be very proud of me if I could choose, because I would have done better than Mom, who had already packed lots of what Dad called "boxes of hoarded goods." I like Dad being proud of me (especially because it normally means PASTRIES for breakfast), so I chose 56 things to take with me. I counted them really carefully so I could be precise when Dad asked (and also make sure that nobody sneakily gave anything away without me noticing). The good news was that the new house was super, super cool. When we first saw it, Maryam and I ran straight into the backyard and whooped, because it was at least twice the size of our old one. We planned out where we could put a soccer net and Esa's swing set, and Maryam did loads of cartwheels to prove just how massive it was. That was the first time we saw the little old lady who lives next door. She peeped over her fence and said, "Humph." And she put her nose higher in the air as if she was smelling something there that she didn't like. Excerpted from Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet by Zanib Mian All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

Originally released in the U.K. as The Muslims, Mian's middle grade debut features some stock elements: after his family moves, Omar fears he won't make friends at his new school and that his teacher will be a space alien, is vexed that he's targeted by bully Daniel, and gets frustrated that his teenage sister has become a "snitch." In Omar's daily life and close-knit Muslim family, religion plays a focal role. His narrative incidentally relays--with readers and with his new friend, Charlie--the prayers his family says daily; fasting, feasting, and other rituals of Ramadan; and his scientist mother's commitment to wearing hijab. Mian also credibly integrates Omar's hurtful experiences with prejudice, as when Daniel tells the boy that "the worst thing about you" is "You're Muslim.... You better go back to your country before we kick you all out" (Daniel adjusts his attitude and Omar learns the genesis of Daniel's bitterness). Yet the dominant tone of wildly imaginative Omar's free-association narrative, laced with expressive hand lettering and Mafaridik's playfully exaggerated line art, remains chipper and uplifting. Ages 8--12. (Feb.)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 3--6--When Omar's family moves to a new house, that means the 10-year-old must start the year at a new school. Omar is nervous because he thinks he will stand out as the new kid and because he is Muslim. Luckily for Omar, he has a great teacher and makes a new friend, Charlie, right away. But Omar and Charlie become the target of a bully, Daniel, who seems to dislike Omar for no other reason than he is Muslim. Daniel even goes as far as saying that all Muslims will be kicked out of the country. When Omar and Daniel are thrown together into a scary situation, the boys learn more about each other and realize that maybe they don't have to be enemies. Told from Omar's point of view, the playful text is bolstered with illustrations throughout that show off his creativity and imagination. VERDICT A great #OwnVoices story for children to learn more about connection and empathy.--Jayna Ramsey, Douglas County Libraries in Parker, CO

Booklist Review

In their #OwnVoices debut, Mian and Mafaridik create a relatable and hilarious story for the elementary-school set. Omar is the middle child of a British Muslim family, and he's feeling anxious about his first day at a new school. Thankfully, he gets seated beside a nice kid named Charlie (instafriend!), but Daniel, the class bully, has his mean eyes on Omar. Outside of school, Omar's family is observing Ramadan, and Omar takes his first crack at fasting, mostly to score bonus points with Allah, which hopefully will get him a prize like a Ferrari! Exploding with personality and imagination, Omar is an easy character to love. His explanations of Muslim faith and culture, such as when and how to pray, his favorite foods to eat (even when they're smelly to cook), and how it's hilarious that non-Muslim people sometimes think his mom never takes off her head scarf, flow naturally through the story. What emerges is the picture of a somewhat harried family that is smart (Omar's parents are scientists) and kind. Doodle illustrations adorn every page, in perfect sync with the story's humorous and dramatic moments. Racist assumptions held by an elderly neighbor and Daniel are excellently handled and evaporate once these characters actually get to know Omar and his family, reinforcing the idea that difference can be a lovely thing.--Julia Smith Copyright 2019 Booklist

Kirkus Book Review

Omar, a British Pakistani boy, and his family have just moved to a new home in London, where he will be starting at a new school.Omar worries about a lot of things, especially "walking into a brand-new classroom with everyone watching and a teacher who might or might not be an alien zombie." He has a little brother and an older sister, and his mom and dad are both scientists. (Published in the U.K. in 2019, the text has been Americanized for the U.S. edition.) Omar has a huge imagination that helps him get through difficult situations, envisioning, for instance, "a better way to get to schoolon a SUPER-Awesome, Magnificent DRAGON." Mafaridik creatively embellishes the text with sketches and a variety of display types. At his new school, Omar makes friends with Charlie but also meets Daniel, a bully. (Both boys present white.) Omar does not tell his mom because he does not want her to worry, instead using humor and creativity to escape Daniel's cruelty. Mian seamlessly weaves Islamic values and teachings through Omar's chatty narration. At prayer in the mosque, "we went into Rukhu. That's when your hands are on your knees.Then we went into Sujood." These descriptions and definitions are consistent and brief throughout, moving with the flow of the story. While the story's tone is light, anti-Muslim sentiment is acknowledged and integrated into the narrative.Readers will be excited to see where Omar's imagination will take him next. (Fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.