We read his over a few nights as our bedtime story and both boys really enjoyed it. They said it was funny and they loved the characters, including Yasmin, Levi and Ezra. We all laughed out loud in places and were never disappointed.

The book is full of really good, positive messages for kids - that is is ok to be yourself being a stand out one for me. The boys were really p[leased to hear at the end of the story that there may be more adventures with Levi on the horizon - we will be definitely looking out for those for sure!

This is one hilarious book that will appeal to children aged 7-11. Yasmin is a child who is looked over and talked over in a crazy larger than life family.

After being bought a toy llama which turns out to be a guardian angel type being, things get really weird and the hilarious antics begin. Levi (the llama) causes chaos and trouble everywhere he goes, but can he actually help Yasmin make friends and find her voice?

This book had me in stitches and is one of the funniest books I've read in a long time.

Thoroughly enjoyed this story of Yasmin and her llama toy Levi- this is perfectly pitched at younger readers starting to read independently, and will definitely keep them entertained with all the hijinks of this pair! Would definitely recommend!
Thank you to Net Galley for the advance e-book copy of this title.

Who doesn’t love a cockney Llama? Llama out loud is funny, quirky and is a perfect book to share at bedtime!

Llama Out Loud is hilarious. And I say that as someone who doesn't often actually laugh out loud at children's books - I appreciate the humour but it just doesn't tickle me, y'know? But Llama Out Loud tickled me, with Levi the Llama's constant quips and Yasmin's crazy family including her Ammi who JUSTCAN'THELPBUTSHOUTEVERYTHING. It's funny. Properly funny.

Llama out Loud follows Yasmin, a ten-year old girl who doesn't speak - the rest of her family do enough of that for her. Living in a tiny house with a huge family has made Yasmin shy away from socialisation and, as a result, her only friends can be found in an old person's daycare centre where she spends her free time playing checkers. When her Aunt buys her the ugliest stuffed llama toy she has ever seen from the local market, Yasmin's life is suddenly turned upside down. Enter Levi, the talking cockney llama who loves a practical joke and will do anything to help Yasmin find "real" friends who aren't octogenarians...

Life with Levi is the whirlwind that Yasmin never wanted and so begins weeks of stuffing Levi into the laundry basket, constantly kicking her bag under the table to get him to shutup and a whole load of trouble that Yasmin has always tried to avoid. Add that to the fact that her teacher has given her new boy Ezra to babysit and Yasmin's quiet life has been well and truly disrupted.

So begins a relationship that you will find in no other book. A young girl and her infuriating talking llama.

I absolutely loved Annabelle Sami's portrayal of Levi throughout, he is the perfect excitable companion tat as a reader you can't help to love, even when he is getting Yasmin detention after detention. Yasmin's family also deserve a special mention as they are just the most amazing characters, a perfect caricature of a noisy family that just don't see what's under their noses.

This is the perfect read-aloud for any Key Stage Two class, even a Year Two class would love this and achieving such a breadth of audience is so rare in children's fiction. I can't wait to share it in school when we return properly and I know it will have many classes rolling on the floor with laughter.

The perfect funny book, complete with cockney llama, chocolate digestives, tuna fish and a big dose of annoyance.

Review to come on blog/goodreads on Tuesday.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

This book sounded AMAZING, and so right up my alley. I have been a shy kid myself, so the book sounded hilarious. Fun pranks, fun ways to make someone more happy in their body. However the pranks were harmful and unfriendly and for me downright shitty. I hated Levi so so much. And frankly, it is a good thing I never got a llama guardian like that when I was that age, because I can tell you that would have ended badly. For me. I wouldn't have been able to handle that along with bullying and feeling insecure about myself. And yes, I know I am not a child so maybe this book isn't for me. Well, I read enough children's books that I loved, that made me laugh or cry or giggle, that brought me joy. And besides, again, 10 year old me? Wouldn't have been amused with this shit either. I know myself and while I did change from when I was 10 (who hasn't?) there are things that stay the same. Magical annoying animals have never been a favourite of mine. Pranks that harm someone? Also no. Feeding animals chocolate? Also no. Yes, that last one? That happens. And I think it is bad that that keeps being added to books. Dogs being fed that, cats being fed that, hamsters being fed that, and now goldfish/fish.

It was a big struggle to get through this book, I was constantly looking to my kindle's % in the hopes I was almost done. Sadly, most of the times it was a no.

I wanted to get rid of Levi so so much. Man, I love the name Levi, and this is not making me happy. The Llama was just so annoying and so aggravating. He must have seen that he wasn't helping.. he was just destroying things. :| Later on we do find out his intentions, but come on. Maybe a little less pranks and stupid things that bring the one you are helping in trouble? I mean who the hell slaps a fish into someone's face because he wasn't getting attention (and then calls getting detention something good). Or who thinks it is a good idea to drag garbage throughout the house so that the girl gets in trouble? Or who thinks it is funny to write a letter about bum worms so she almost loses her competition? Who thinks it is funny to do that and all the other things? You are not helping her. Instead you are making her sad, you are making her angry, you make her feel crap. And then there is the thing he sent to the boss of OLD after Yasmin won the competition. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK. Sorry, but that was just messed up. And it just made me want to throw my poor kindle to the wall. Yes, maybe she should spend time with kids, but who the fuck cares if she wants to fucking be with old people and play chess with them? Kids don't need to just be with kids. :| Who are you to fucking decide that for her? Fuck off.
"LLamas love kids." Well, is it OK if I don't believe you given the shit you pulled?

Also wtf was up with the parents? Wanting to put your daughter on a plane to Pakistan for TWO things done wrong (which were Levi's fault, not hers btw, but since it is a magical llama...). All the while the boys do more crap and never seemed to get any reprimand or threats. I found it very annoying and I could clearly understand why Yasmin decided to hide and stop talking. And constantly shouting. Talk normal. Listen to your kid. Who doesn't celebrate their kids birthday? Some people shouldn't get kids if they can't treat them right or even give them time to explain things (though given the magic llama... ). But still. Let your kids tell or write their side of the thing.
And then at the end there is a big boohoo dramafest that just felt like it came out of nowhere and that felt so utterly fake... at least to me. The parents have been acting this way but instead they were actually doing y? HAHAHAHAHA. No.

And why did she feel guilty at 80%, I would have been cheering and bouncing around.

I did love the chess stuff, I loved how good Yasmin was at it. I did like Ezra and Yasmin becoming friends (and I think the whole llama wasn't part of that happening). Ezra was a fun character and definitely reminded me of myself. :P

The art was OK, though on my kindle it was all broken up so I missed art or it was all weird. But the art was definitely the one thing I was looking forward to the most.

I was happy with the ending though, but I don't give credit to Levi. I am sure that she would eventually have found her voice given how far her parents went with their crap. Plus, hey, if Levi wasn't doing anything things wouldn't have escalated to this point. Think of that. I did like the plan they concocted to get back into OLD (though it was way obvious, especially if you bring parents :P). But again, no credit to Levi. At all.

So this was definitely not for me. I kept hoping it would get better, but instead of that it got worse, but by then I didn't want to DNF (I generally don't DNF when I get over 40%). *sighs* I was looking forward to a fun, hilarious book, instead I got this.

Yasmin Shah is fed up of being spoken over and ignored. Her loud but lovable family are always deciding what's best for her and the children at school think she's 'weird'. When a birthday wish brings some Llama-filled mayhem to her quiet life of checkers and... Well, just checkers really, Yasmin needs to take drastic action or face a summer in Pakistan with her strict Daadi.

Can Yasmin get rid of Levi before he ruins her life?

This duo are a lot of fun! Yasmin's quiet frustration and Levi's over the top antics make them a hilarious pair. Levi's pranks will have children giggling out loud and gasping in horror, in equal measure. Yasmin's increasingly desperate plans to get rid of him are also very funny.

Yasmin's family life, with her annoying brothers, constantly shouting Ammi and opinionated aunties, brings added chaos and fun to this story. I loved the illustrations of her time at home, and Yasmin's trek through everyone else's rooms to reach her own creates lots of laugh out loud moments.

Friendship is at the very heart of this story, as well as acceptance and overcoming the fear of being yourself. Communication is a vital part of any relationship, and learning to communicate with Levi helps Yasmin to open up to many of the people in her life.

The tone of the narration was my favourite part of this story - the puns, the haiku and the constant interjections had me giggling from beginning to end. It would be a great story to read aloud to a class.

I can't wait to find out what Yasmin and Levi get up to in their next adventure, and I'm certain children will love them too.

Yasmin lives in a tall house with one room on each floor and plenty of people taking up the space. They are all loud, full of noise and unlikely to listen to silent Yasmin. She hasn’t spoken since she was quite little, and rarely stands up for herself when getting in trouble by her older brothers. Yasmin’s birthday comes and she feels ignored, not even liking the gift from her parents.
At the market, she finds an ugly llama toy and though disturbed by the look of it, she is drawn to it. Her Auntie buys it for her and the toy comes home. Levi the llama comes to life and turns Yasmin’s world completely upside down. She gets detentions, her parents are threatening to send her to Pakistan to stay with her Daadi for the summer and she nearly loses an all important checkers match.
Checkers are Yasmin’s safe place, as is her time in OLD with the octogenarians. They accept her and make her feel welcome.
Levi, we find out later, has been sent on a secret mission to help Yasmin with the wish she made on her birthday. She wants to stand up for herself, especially in her loud family, but to do this she will need to find her voice,
Levi is a hilarious character, knowingly causing chaos to help Yasmin though it angers her more than helps initially. Will anger be enough for force Yasmin’s voice?

I adored this book! It gives a glimpse into a noisy inter generational family from Pakistan and their ways as well as providing a glimpse into a young girl who chooses to stay silent. With plenty of positive messages about being yourself, learning to push your boundaries and find your place in the family and world, there are moments of sheer hilarity as Levi causes endless problems.

Funny and meaningful, a delight from start to finish.

Llama Out Loud is the first in a new series written by Annabelle Sami, who is rapidly becoming one of my favourite new authors of hilarious middle-grade fiction. This is laugh-out-loud storytelling about a shy young girl and one very LOUD llama.

In Llama Out Loud, Annabelle Sami continues her mission to increase the representation of funny girls and diverse characters in children’s books. It is fantastic for some children to see a character that more closely resembles themselves and that they can feel more connected to. This is her second diverse lead character after she first introduced us to Agent Zaiba in Agent Zaiba Investigates. In Llama Out Loud we are introduced to Yasmin.

Yasmin is a mute ten year-old-girl who lives with her rather noisy extended-family in Brick Lane, East London. Her world changes for the worse when a scruffy, toy llama comes bursting into her life and unfortunately for Yasmin, he very much doesn’t know when to shut up! Levi the llama is loud, rude and always has something to say and is set to bring chaos and mischief into her life. There is no end to the drama that one llama can cause and there seems to be only one solution…the llama has to go.

Despite Yasmin’s best laid plans (recorded in her special ‘Adventures of Secret Agent Yasmin’ notebook) nothing seems to work and she is swept away in Levi’s antics. Whether Levi is playing pranks in Yasmin’s home, getting her into trouble at school or disrupting life at the old people’s home, there is never a dull moment when Levi is around. But perhaps there is a method to all of his madness and he is on his own secret mission to help Yasmin find her voice.

Llama Out Loud is packed full of mayhem, mischief and llama based puns. The action moves on at pace and has brilliant comic timing (mostly thanks to Levi). Levi is brilliant fun and is possibly the best talking animal since Donkey in Shrek. This cockney speaking llama had me in fits of giggles and despite all of his pranks and unwelcome antics you can’t help but love him.

In amongst all the laughs are important messages on friendship, self-belief and finding the inner-confidence to stand up for yourself. Yasmin’s growth as a character throughout the story will be relatable to many readers. It is through the antics of Levi that Yasmin is able to overcome her shyness and eventually finds her voice.

I loved the Brick Lane setting. It is always a must visit place for me whenever I am in London and Sami depicts it perfectly. The hustle and bustle of Old Spitalfields Market, the rainbow coloured bagels, the curry houses, the cobbles…there is nowhere quite like it. The references to Pakistani culture are a great fit and these will help many readers understand and appreciate a culture that is different to their own.

Allen Fatimaharan provides the black and white illustrations and they complement the story perfectly. I am particularly fond of the illustrations of Levi - his mischievous nature just shines through.

So grab yourself a glass of ‘llamanade’ and get ready for plenty of llama-drama. Llama Out Loud is due for release on 9th July 2020. I eagerly await the next adventure, Llama on a Mission (I’ll alpaca my bags - yes Levi I know you’re a llama and not an alpaca). Recommended for 7+.

With thanks to Netgalley and Egmont for the review copy.