Habibah: The Story of an Island Girl

An emotional and compelling historical coming-of-age tale set in the islands of the Malay Archipelago. The story blends adventure, romance and history thus giving the reader a glimpse into the intriguing past.

The year is 1880. Habibah lives on a remote island and expects her life to be ordinary and peaceful and ordinary until the arrival of a shipwrecked sailor.

“Lying in the dark, it felt like any other peaceful night on the island, except it was not. My body was tense, my heart raced and my mind could not stop thinking about the sailor and the outrageous things he had said. Could any of this be true?”

The sailor brings news of a forgotten past, and urges her towards decisions that could dramatically change her future.

*The book is based on the manuscript that was placed 2nd runner-up at the 2016 Scholastic Asian Book Award.