Mosquitoes Don't Bite Me

By Pendred Noyce MD

A girl immune to mosquito bites faces danger and ethical dilemmas in Kenya.

3.8/5 Goodreads · 36 ratings

200 pages

$12.95Save 4%

In stock. Also at Amazon or Bookshop.

Bookroo's summary

Nala Simiyu, a half-Kenyan seventh-grader, is immune to mosquito bites. When a pharmaceutical executive discovers her unique trait, Nala embarks on a journey to Kenya to explore her family's connection to mosquitoes. But her adventure takes a dark turn when she's kidnapped by a grieving father seeking revenge for his daughter's malaria death. As Nala navigates this perilous situation, she confronts issues of health disparities, racism, and the ownership of biological information. Will her courage and compassion be enough to overcome these challenges and return home safely?

From the publisher

Mosquitoes don’t bite Nala Simiyu. It’s part of who she is, like being a half-Kenyan seventh-grader whose mother is in a wheelchair. But when a schoolmate’s father–who happens to head up a large drug company–learns of Nala’s special power, the excitement begins. Nala has the chance to travel to Kenya to investigate mosquitoes’ reactions to her father’s family. All goes well until a man heartbroken by his daughter’s death from malaria kidnaps Nala. In the midst of a realistic adventure story, this book will introduce young readers to such dilemmas as health disparities, subtle racism, and who owns biological information. Brave, fallible, compassionate and spirited, Nala is a strongly relatable character in a loving, imperfect family.

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