Congratulations on the publication of SO LOUD! by Sahar Golshan, illustrated by Shiva Delsooz publishing today in Canada with Annick Press!
A fun and touching debut that explores the power of finding your voice.
Rudābeh (Rudy for short) loves to talk, sing, jump and shout. There’s just one problem: the adults in her life are always telling her that she is SO LOUD. When her grandmother (Māmān Bozorg) visits from Iran for the first time, Rudy worries that she might be too loud for her. But as she tries to be quieter, Rudy starts to feel less and less like herself. Listening closely to the many sounds in her world—from husky howls and streetcar chimes to Māmān Bozorg’s roaring sneezes—Rudy tries to figure out the full range of her own voice, discovering along the way the joy in being loud.
With exuberant illustrations by Shiva Delsooz, this charming story will resonate with readers who love to make noise and are still learning where and when to take up space.
Praise for SO LOUD!:
“A beautiful celebration of girls who spill outside set boundaries and their powerful flowing voices. You will fall in love with irrepressible Rudy and this howlingly sweet, roaringly sonic debut.” —Kyo Maclear, author of The Wish Tree
“This is a story I wish I’d read as a child—a touching story of a multigenerational family and a young girl discovering the power of her voice.” —Jael Richardson, author of The Hockey Jersey
“So Loud! is an adorable, beautiful, healing, hilarious, and deeply heartfelt book with an important message at its core. Readers will fall in love with Rudābeh as she learns how important it is to have access to a voice that flows like a river—sometimes gentle and soft, but also sometimes loud and powerful. This book will resonate especially with anyone who has worried or has been told that they are ‘too much’ or that they need to ‘tone it down’ in order to fit in. So Loud! is an important reminder that all of our voices matter.” —Kai Cheng Thom, author of From the Stars in the Sky to the Fish in the Sea
“So Loud! tells the story that many of us go through during childhood. We are born lions and lionesses. But then, we are domesticated little by little by external voices until we turn into quiet little mice. Yet, when Māmān Bozorg arrives with a bang, we are empowered and reminded that just like rivers, huskies, and birds, we are meant to sing the song we were born carrying within our hearts!” —Ani Castillo, author-illustator of Ping
“Rudy is told she is too loud. But her grandmother (Māmān Bozorg)’s voice resonates with heartiness and character. What version of Rudy should she be? Readers will love the bold-faced font declaring the howl of a husky, the chants in the schoolyard, the chimes of the streetcar, the roar of a lion, Māmān Bozorg’s sneeze, the gurgle of a river . . . and Rudy is a bit of everything. Author Sahar Golshan’s debut picture book is a sensory declaration of what it means to self-express, take up space, and to be one’s self for all to hear. Shiva Delsooz illustrates an urban landscape vibrant with colors that swirl in blues, pinks, purples, and peach. Thick and thin lines zigzag across her apartment, in her city, and on the streetcar. Large fonts accentuate declarations. So Loud! welcomes the voices of girls to be bold and live out loud. Like its title, one needs to read this story aloud.” —Nadia L. Hohn, author of Malaika’s Costume
“Rudābeh is an exuberant little girl with a gregarious personality and a big voice to match. The adults in Rudy’s life constantly tell her she is too loud, but when she tries turning her volume down like it’s a water tap sealed tight, she feels diminished. Rudy’s Māmān Bozorg (her grandmother) visits from Iran to celebrate Norooz, the Iranian festival of spring, and encourages the child to be true to herself: “Rudābeh means river. Let it flow.” Shiva Delsooz’s energetic illustrations are full of colour, movement and emotion. So Loud! speaks volumes about the importance of embracing and using your own voice. This delightful debut picture book by Sahar Golshan is a joyful read-aLOUD storytime pick that needs to be heard.” — Linda Ludke, Collections Management Librarian, London Public Library (Experts’ Pick, The Canadian Children’s Book Centre March 2024 Newsletter)
Sahar Golshan is a writer, language learner, and the director of the short documentary KAR. Her work has appeared in Room, Taclanese, The Puritan, Shameless, and Tongues: On Longing and Belonging through Language. She is the 2022 winner of the Marina Nemat Award for Creative Non-Fiction and a recipient of the 2019 Air Canada Short Film Award. Sahar is a graduate of the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program at the University of Guelph and a former participant in the Diaspora Dialogues Long Form Mentorship program. She likes asking questions.
Sahar is represented by Amy Tompkins.
If you want to order a copy of this charming book, click here: https://www.annickpress.com/Books/S/So-Loud
Congratulations!