I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I really loved Muzna’s character and her growth throughout the story. The writing was beautiful and witty and it made me want to read more by this author!

DNF at 20%

So, this wasn't for me. I found I Am Thunder read a bit too juvenile for my personal tastes and I had such a hard time getting past the dialogue. Every line her best friend says is especially cringeworthy and made it difficult to want to continue on in the novel. I think Muhammad Khan has a lot of potential as a writer, she has some really great descriptive scenes here, so I am willing to check out her novels in the future, but this is a pass for me.

I really identified with Muzna on the shy, writer-girl front. I loved this story and felt honored to read it. It was equal parts funny and sweet and compulsively readable.

It's nice to see more teen YA books with non-white leads. It's even nicer to see their problems aren't around racism only plots, such as being murdered or having a mosque burn down etc

While I found this book a bit hard to read in my personal opinion, wither it be the formatting or maybe it was the fact that I don't read a lot of books based in England (I will be changing that) but once I got through that it was a very powerful story. I have recommended it to everyone I can.

The book was a bit slow to start, but about a third of the way in it really picked up. It's an interesting look at the story of a young British Muslim woman coming into her own in this time of Islamophobia. I liked that she was conflicted, it made her seem more real. I only wish that in real life people got the kind of ending that happened in this book. 

The style of writing made me feel like I was reading a teen girl's diary, so some of the terms she used were difficult to understand since I'm far past teenage years! LOL!

An exploration of Islamophobia and extremism in Britain, seen through the eyes of a teenage girl, I Am Thunder is an incredible book that isn’t afraid to take on the difficult topics. In the past year, we’ve seen quite a few #ownvoices books for teens that tackle issues faced by young Muslims in the West and this one really tackles the issues. Inspired by real-life, the book looks at why and how young Muslims can be caught up in extremism.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It is a quick read despite the heavy topic. In the beginning of the book I felt like it might be a little too young for an adult like me but the second half changes that and the issues are well written for readers of all ages. Some adults may find the South London slang that is used in the book a little tricky (I did find that a bit off-putting, I get that is how teenagers talk but it doesn’t completely translate to the page) but this book is definitely a read for people of all ages and all cultures.

A seperate video will be posted on my youtube channel on the release week. Once it's published, I will link it down below.

I was provided an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

I was scared when I first picked this book up. I am still very scared to post a review of this book because I cannot speak for the accuracy of the cultural and religious portrayal of this book. I will not be judging the content related to those topics because I have yet to see own voices reviews for this book to get a better idea of the accuracy of it.

In the author's note, it is mentioned that the intention of the author was to explore the many reasons behind why young people would just leave Occidental countries to go an join extremist groups and/or cults in the countries of origin. Being a teacher, Khan felt very strongly about understanding the youth he is surrounded by day by day. I found that this was a very important thing - to show why such kids would just go on and leave their entire life and family to go follow some people they never met in countries they probably never visited. 
I think that's a good resumé of the author's intention. If not, I am truly and deeply sorry.

I loved Muzna. I totally could see my younger self in her and I just think that she was really well portrayed. I'm not sure if Khan made some research or just based her character on his observations but he did a great job at creating a young teenager girl who is totally naïve and who sees the good in everything. 
I liked that she felt like a real teenager. I liked that she was a whole character, with her flaws and her qualities and that we were shown her personality throughout her actions and not told. Since this is a first-person POV I think that it was overall really well done and I really grew to love her.

One thing that I also really enjoyed is that even though she is really naive, she is also very self-aware and she questions everything that she is told. There is a lot of things that she is told throughout this book that she questions deeply before accepting them and the more the book goes, the more critical she is of the information given to her by Jameel. 

I'm sorry. This is my second time writing this review and I'm pissed because the first one was better. But I lost it. Hurray to technology! 

I just overall think that this book is important and that young readers SHOULD read this because it is an important subject. Even more so young teenagers who are Pakistani/Muslim like Muzna because it is wonderful to be able to read about characters that are similar to us. 

I recommend this book to everyone. It was beautiful and amazing.

What initially drew me to this book was the beautiful cover. On a whim, I decided to just request the digital arc. Wow. It is such a powerful book. Written beautifully and so darn well. The main character, Muzna Saleem, is just someone you can just root for and feel connected to. This book is going to be a big winner this year. I can feel it. Go and read it before everyone else and their dog reads it! You will definitely not be sorry you did!

Fellow bookworms, keep your eyes peeled for this book on January 25th. Set in present day Britain, Muhammed Khan explores the racism and discrimination of the Muslim population in England(and the Western world) while also bringing the topic of the recruitment tactics of some extremist groups . His protagonist is a teenage girl by the name of Muzna Saleem. An only child, Muzna's future is filled with plenty of expectations from her parents, immigrants from Pakistan. All Muzna wants is to be a writer, to create books with strong Muslim characters, so that the racism that she deals with on a daily basis will become something of the past. On the other hand, her parents desire her to become a doctor. Although Muzna's parents do want their daughter to obtain a strong education, they fear the effects of living in a society and culture so different than their origin country. We see Muzna 's parents very concerned about the friends that Muzna makes. When a female friend gets herself in trouble and Muzna's father loses his job, the family move to another area and a new school. It is here that Muzna catches the eye of a good looking young man, Arif. As Muzna and Arif grow closer, Muzna begins to question everyone around her, including her parents. 

I absolutely devoured this book and I loved the strong character that Muzna embodies. When a favorite teacher is wrongly accused, Muzna sets about to lead the school body on a campaign to reinstate him. Muzna is the very character that she wants to write about in her books. When Muzna meets Arif, we see that it is only gradually that Muzna is being led towards extremism. Early in the novel, Muzna is ridiculed for the way that she looks and Arif's kind manner is a breath of fresh air. Especially in a new school. 

Muhammed Khan was determined to show how young people(specifically, girls) are being recruited into joining extremist groups.What we can see as a reader, is that Muzna is on the outs with her parents, she is aware and speaks up regarding the racism she sees towards Muslims. But as many friends and adults begin to point out to her, Muzna does not see the pull that Arif and his older brother begin to have on her. What begins as curiosity to explore her religion, soon becomes an isolation from those around her. But I loved that through it all when these things were happening, Muzna has those little whispers of doubt. We see that as strong as she is, Muzna is also vulnerable. 

As a teacher reading this book, written by a teacher that is trying to explore his own questions about how these things happen, "I am Thunder" and its main character, Muzna deeply moved me and scared me too. Our children are so vulnerable in the internet age. Books like this will hopefully encourages us to "not keep quiet." I don't want to jinx it, but I felt that this book is definitely on par with "The Hate U Give. " It certainly deserves our attention.