Graphic Novel Review - 'Huda F Are You?' by Huda Fahmy

I think it was about time I read this:

So, 'Huda F Are You?'

A very funny, poignant, emotional, touching, and relevant sorta-semiautobiographical comic about a Muslim American teenage girl, who is as ordinary and as full of self-doubt, insecurities and crises as everybody else. She's as relatable, unsure and introspective as they come, as well as being hilarious.

Plus I think the title is one of the funniest, cleverest things I've ever read.

In 'Huda F Are You?', there are topics and themes of racism, Islamophobia, microaggressions, macroaggressions, social awkwardness, imposter syndrome, finding your own identity and not trying to please everybody and fit in (trying not to constantly seek validation, which has been ingrained), finding your own self-worth and being happy with yourself, standing up for yourself and others, sisterhood, mother and daughter relationships, and generational trauma.

It also discusses and explores the meaning of self-hate, which is linked to self-doubt, self-sabotage, and feeling undeserving - 'When anxiety or self-hatred is strong, it can cause a person to feel great self-doubt, which often leads to second-guessing and self-gaslighting.' (page 132) Internalised bigotry, like every form of bigotry, comes from self-hatred, fear and insecurities.

This is a real eye-opening lesson. Heartbreaking, too.

Poor Huda. I'm glad she managed to eventually recognise this in herself, and ger over it, and maybe seek therapy. She loves being a Muslim and learning all about Islam, and she wants to learn how to love herself whilst living in an ignorant, hateful, bigoted, stupid country. It's society, the world, that has a problem - with her and her religion and race - not her.

But fear not, for 'Huda F Are You?' is overall lighthearted in tone. It is genuinely humorous and clever, and I enjoy the comical, abstract, cartoony, easy-going art style. It's sort of like a Jane Austen novel ('Pride and Prejudice' comes to mind, and not just because Huda has four sisters) with modern Muslim leads, in comics form.

'Huda F Are You?' deserves to be as culturally significant, and celebrated, as 'Persepolis', 'Calvin and Hobbes', and 'Dilbert'. It's funny as heck, without being irreverent or disrespectful.

Utterly, Huda-riffically unforgettable. I'm glad to have finally read it.

Final Score: 4/5