My Baba is the Best

Highly recommended.

Liz Derouet, Magpies

Explores the love between a father and his daughter and the value of actively participating in life with them.

Matthew Sims, The Star Weekly

This loving look at the father-daughter bond, just in time for Father’s Day in September, is a delight. Smiling happy faces beam out from every page as they do so many things together. Kids will love recognising the things they do with their fathers, and tell stories of what makes their father the best.

Fran Knight, ReadPlus

Richmond triple premiership player Bachar Houli celebrates the special bonds between fathers and daughters in his first children’s book. The retired AFL star, a dad of three, shows off a talent for storytelling through the eyes of his young daughter Sarah. The pair share a love of camping, fishing, bike riding, games, their Muslim faith and family traditions in the great outdoors. It’s perfect Father’s Day fare.

Geelong Advertiser

As Father's Day approaches, this is a book to share to celebrate the special bond between fathers and daughters, and the fun times they share. My baba has a big beard and a big smile. He gives the best hugs and never sits still. Gardening, jogging, fishing, watching movies or going camping . . . Baba and I do lots of things together. My baba is the best. I love my baba! And while you might think there are many such books available, this one is written by Bachar Houli, not only triple AFL Premiership player for Richmond and All-Australian on-field, but also the first devout Muslim to play the game at that level. So this is a unique opportunity for our Muslim students to see themselves in such a story, demonstrating that their relationships with their dads is pretty much the same as all kids, whilst acknowledging the subtle differences like the special bedtime prayer. Time and time again we hear those who are not from the dominant mainstream WASP community say that they despaired because they never saw anyone like them represented in books or on television - Dylan Alcott addressed it directly in his acceptance speech for Australian of the Year, 2022 - “I used to hate having a disability. I hated it so much. I hated being different and, you know, I didn’t want to be here anymore. I really didn’t… Whenever I turned on the TV or the radio or the newspaper, I never saw anybody like me.”- and while this is gradually being addressed, how delighted young readers will be to see their family reflected in something so special. While we all have more in common than difference, it is the difference that seems to get the attention so by sharing such as this even our youngest readers can start to understand the threads that bind us are so much stronger. Our relationships with our dads are the same no matter who we are, what we look like, what we do or what we believe in.

Barbara Braxton, https://thebottomshelf.edublogs.org/