Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-FattahOrchard Books (Scholastic), 2007

Smart and funny and sweet book about Amal, an Australian-Palestinian high school junior who decides to wear the hijab full-time. Amal’s smart and independent, good at debate (and therefore also good at quick reactions to the stupid things people say to her based on the assumptions they make about her and her faith). Generally speaking, I like protagonists who read books rather than Glamour and Cosmo, but Amal’s clearly not an airhead, and I’m a sucker for stories that include friendships between teenagers and crabby old people, which this one does.