Leila and the Blue Fox

Leila, a young teen, is catching a plane by herself to Tromsø, Norway. to go see her mother, Amani, whom she hasn’t seen for six years. Amani is unable to meet her at the airport due to her work commitments and sends her assistant, Liv, to collect Leila. This, to Leila, confirms her worst fear: that her mother doesn’t want her. However, once reunited, her mother seems genuinely pleased to see Leila and offers to take her on a sea journey to continue tracking an Arctic fox, whom scientists have named Miso.

Leila feels she hasn’t much choice and agrees. Liv and her daughter Britt are also coming on the trip, along with another research scientist named Matty. The work is important because animal behaviour is changing due to the impact of climate change on their habitat.

Leila was born in Syria where her mother worked as a meteorologist. Leila’s parents are separated. As a result of the civil war in Syria, Leila and Amani become refugees, along with Amani’s sister and her daughter. The two families escape the violence and settle in Croydon, England. Amani soon accepts her current job in Tromsø, leaving Leila with her aunt and cousin, who provide a loving home for her.

As their journey progresses, Leila shares her social media marketing skills with the team and helps them build their following and attracting more funding. The scientists eventually catch up with Miso, but Leila unwittingly makes a noise and scares the fox away, causing her to run off at a great pace. The team set off after Miso and again catch up with her but she is stranded on an iceberg.

Leila is instrumental in rescuing Miso and releasing her back into the wild. Along the way, however, the team cross international borders and Amani doesn’t have the proper visa. The coastguard catches up with them and takes Amani to a detention centre for questioning. Leila is able to use their social media following to pressure authorities into releasing her mother and they return to Tromsø. Leila gains a greater understanding of her mother and the work she does while Amani admits to not always being a good mother to Leila. The story concludes with Amani committing to spending more time with her daughter during the holidays.

This is an insightful adventure into the Arctic Circle that touches on political and relational issues. Interspersed with Leila’s story is Miso’s own story told through drawings by Tom de Freston with minimal words, which is a lovely addition. The story touches on the trauma that refugees experience and the complicated issue of border control. These contentious subjects are considered from Leila’s perspective and are presented in a way that is easy for younger readers to understand.

animal habitats, Arctic circle, climate change, international borders, border control, politics, refugees, family relationships

1. On two occasions, Amani practises the Middle Eastern tradition of spitting to avoid the ‘evil eye.’ 2. Leila attends yoga sessions while on the boat. These sessions are for relaxation and meditation isn’t mentioned. 3. Some swearing using Arabic words. 4. It’s mentioned that Matty is gay but this has no relevance to the story.