Noah's Law

by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Sixteen-year-old Noah is a troublemaker. His father is a hotshot barrister. This is not a good combination. When Noah gets caught mucking up at school, his dad sends him to work at his aunt's law firm during the holidays to 'learn responsibility' and 'fix his attitude'. There he meets Jacinta – the cute intern who knows her way around a photocopier, and Casey – the wicked witch of the firm. Noah becomes involved in a case where a woman has been killed during a mugging gone wrong. There's a grieving husband, a guilty employer, and an open and shut case involving lots of money. But right and wrong, and crime and punishment are soon entangled as Noah realises that things are seldom what they seem.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Mystery, Audiobook

338 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2010

About the author

Randa Abdel-Fattah was born in Sydney in 1979. She is a Muslim of Palestinian and Egyptian heritage. She grew up in Melbourne and attended a Catholic primary school and Islamic secondary college where she obtained an International Baccaularetate. She studied Arts/Law at Melbourne University during which time she was the Media Liaison Officer at the Islamic council of Victoria, a role which afforded her the opportunity to write for newspapers and engage with media institutions about their representation of Muslims and Islam.

During university and her role at the ICV, Randa was a passionate human rights advocate and stood in the 1996 federal election as a member of the Unity Party-Say No To Hanson. Randa has also been deeply interested in inter-faith dialogue and has been a member of various inter-faith networks. She also volunteered with different human rights and migrant resource organisations including the Australian Arabic council, the Victorian migrant resource centre, Islamic women’s welfare council, Palestine human rights campaign, Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, to name a few.

Randa has used her writing as a medium for expressing her views about the occupation of Palestine. Her articles about Palestine, Australian Muslims and the misunderstood status of women in Islam have been published in the Australian, the Age, the Sydney Morning Herald, the Canberra Times, New Matilda, Le Monde (France).

Randa is frequently sought for comment by the media on issues pertaining to Palestine, Islam or Australian Muslims. She has appeared on SBS’s Insight, ABC’s First Tuesday Book Club, ABC’s Q & A, Channel 7’s Sunrise and Channel 10’s 9am.

Randa is also a regular guest at schools around Australia addressing students about her books and the social justice issues they raise. Randa has also been a guest at Sweden’s Gothenburg and Litterlund book festivals (2007 and 2008) and Kuala Lumpur’s Book festival (2008). She has also toured in Brunei and the UK.

Randa lives in Sydney with her husband and their two children. She works as a litigation lawyer.

Reviews

[hollyishere · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is nothing like going into a novel with total comfort and familiarity for the authors previous work and that's exactly how I felt about Noah's Law. From the moment I flicked open the cover, I could already see the humor flowing from the page and was quite curious how things would turn out for the male protagonist and his court room proceedings.

It all begins with sixteen year old Noah, a generally good guy who loves getting up to mischief just for a laugh only this time he ends up doing six weeks work experience at his Aunt's law firm in the hopes that it'll teach him some maturity and manners. The only problem is, his father doesn't expect him to enjoy the time delving through cases when he's meant to be tackling the ever important task of photocopying multiple court forms.

While having recently gone through a divorce, Noah's family are generally the loving kind that anyone would enjoy spending time with. I especially enjoyed the mini court hearings his lawyer-father would hold whenever the kids wanted extra time in-front of the telly or simply got sick of taking out the trash and I think this is one of the reasons Noah looks up to his father so much and secretly wants to become a lawyer himself.

Of course there is a love interest to keep us guessing and while Jacinta is a Uni student working at the law firm, she is still quite young enough to enjoy time with Noah and his best mate Amit as they get extremely caught up in a case involving a questionable character claiming money for his wife's untimely death and while it might not seem the most interesting case in the world, I was actually caught up the courtroom debacles entirely as it provides plenty of major twists and turns for the novel.

With the mentioning of a courtroom, I'm sure this book will attract young fans of CSI or Law & Order but I'm hoping a few other people take a chance on it as it kept me guessing right until the end and explained the impossible legal jargon in the most perfect way possible.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I started reading, Noah’s Law, to be honest I didn’t have high expectations as I’d never read a book by the author and didn’t know what I was getting into. But after reading the book, I am very pleased to say that I am impressed, I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did!

Noah’s Law, is such an effortless and fun read. It’ll have you hooked and on the edge of your seat in no time and leave you wondering what will happen next! The plot was incredible, trust me, not a boring moment in the entire book. It’s the kind of story, that makes you wanna stay up all night. Stuff the fact it’s late, it’ll have you in a page flipping frenzy.

Noah...wow, what a fantastic male POV. Seriously, it’s like the author is actually a teenage boy, it’s that authentic and spot on. You name it, his thoughts, his obsession over girls, attitude and behaviour. I also loved his friend Amit and Jacinta, the intern at work, as they were great friends, that stuck around even if it meant getting caught up in murderous case!

This was my first book by Randa Abdel-Fattah and after really enjoying it, I can’t wait to check out some of her other books she’s written. Loved the authors humourous and witty style of writing. I also thought she did a splendid job writing about how the law industry works and all the detailed ins and outs. Wonder why...maybe it’s because, she works as a litigation lawyer! :)

The story reminded me of, the TV show, Magnum P.I, that my mum and I used to watch. Except instead of a real, private investigator it was Noah (an inexperienced teen still at high school) who was on the case! If you STILL need convincing, how’s this. I hadn’t even finished the book (wasn’t even half way) and I felt like I could whole heartedly recommend it. Yes, it was that good!

[Steve lovell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of attending a book launch by this young lady in Hobart recently, and what an accomplished person she is! A leading light in her community, she is also an author in the young adult and new adult fiction areas, as well as a practicing lawyer. She spoke to a us in an exceedingly articulate manner about the background to her books – those she is best known for, including ‘Does My Head Look Big in This’, as well as her latest – ‘No Sex in the City’. The one under review here, ‘Noah’s Law’, rated nary a mention, and I now somewhat regret my entry point into her oeuvre as it is not what she is noted for – the condition of young Muslim women in contemporary Australian society. On the strength of the quality of writing in this, the odd one out in that the protagonist is male, I’ll be seeking out her other offerings.

Is it unreasonable of me to have reservations about bright teensters out detecting the detectives, out lawyering the lawyers? My daughter, a YA author herself, will probably shake her lovely head at this, and I realise I probably make this statement because I am an anachronistic old man in his dotage. That being said, ‘Noah’s Law’ is immensely enjoyable, even if it is what I describe as a ‘grower’ – it starts slowly, but then sneaks up on the reader so that, by the end, he/she is hooked by its intrigue. How will our heroes of tender years win out over the devilish adult evil doers? It’s a given they will, but seemingly up against the legal system, as well as the conspirators, the odds are decidedly stacked against them!

For this peruser, the novel is at its best in the courtroom scenes when the author uses her vocational expertise to take us through the various stages of prosecution and defence. Our hero is born of the silver spoon, possesses the necessary arrogance to get ahead, and even has romantic intentions seemingly above his station. The two main female characters are well drawn, and interesting foils to Noah’s tendency to self-indulge. They provide the balance to his pranks and, once he is ‘won over’, his schemes. They come at him, though, from diametrically opposite viewpoints. The over-riding theme throughout is ‘does the means justify the end’ with, of course, by the end, ‘right’ prevailing.

For an adult reader, there isn’t a problem with the ‘slow burn’ nature of the narrative as it builds. I just wonder, though, if the desired audience has the patience to hang-in there – or is that too demeaning of the age group? Also, would the denim dominated cover attract the demographic? I’m no judge of this after initially failing to stock the first Harry Potter in my school library because I felt the cover was too naff – so what would I know??? I suspect the dialogue between Noah and his best mate, let alone between the criminals, could have a bit more edge, but this is a seriously competent effort and has me looking forward to more.

Harking back to her launch, it was so saddening to hear this beautiful woman relate the trials and tribulations inflicted on her as a Muslim child by our country’s redneck brigade. As a nation that generally does multiculturalism well, if decidedly not our processing of asylum seekers, it still jolts that there are those in our society who achieve glee from overt prejudice. Although Hobs is getting there, I delight in visits to Melbourne where ‘I open my eyes and see the world’. As an Australian who therefore greatly appreciates the wonderful contribution that non-Anglos make to our culture, I wanted to apologise to her then and there. It all needs addressing, but how?

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read. Love this author, totally reliable for warmth, humour, and a beautiful youthful australian outlook. Nice insight into a small law firm as well. My only quibble is Noah's investigations against the client his firm represents. That really seems wrong despite notions of justice. Notwithstanding that a very enjoyable read that I would definitely recommend to anyone who enjoys young adult fiction.

[Vanessaloveszayn stojanovska · Rating 3 out of 5]

i liked it at start because he was naughty and he had to go stay with his auntie in the city and she is a lawyer but then after a little while it started to goe boring and i just wasn't intersted in it anymore so i put it down and read another book.

[Chava · Rating 2 out of 5]

YA book about a self-absorbed adolescent who is trouble, gets sent to his aunt and still thinks he knows it all. This seriously affirms all negative stereotypes about Gen Y

[Cara Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

After trouble-maker Noah gets caught changing his class's exam results, his father sends him to work at his aunt's law firm for the summer to teach him a lesson.

So of course there is crime-solving!

It starts off a bit slow, but once Noah gets nosy about the compensation case he's photocopying for, things pick up. The characters are great – I particularly liked Casey, the lawyer on the compensation case, who starts off quite unlikable, but it's because she didn't care whether people liked her or not that she was such an appealing character. Plus I reckon she put up with Noah's cheekiness quite well.

I also enjoyed the family interactions – Noah's father is a top QC, and the scenes where he ran trials for family discipline really highlighted the way siblings can be squabble. And even though Noah would have denied it, he admired his dad a lot.

I think this would be great summer holiday reading. Go justice! And I never guessed who the murderer was.

[Read3r’z Re-Vu · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is awesome!!! One I would call “un-put-down-able”. A very well written story about Noah – a teenage boy from a rich family who is a bit of a delinquent – doesn’t care for life or school, didn’t exactly have much in terms of future prospects as he felt everything in life was just handed to him until one afternoon when Noah’s father is informed of his most recent prank, he’s had enough and Noah is sent to his Aunty’s law firm during the school holidays as a punishment and lesson in discipline. In hating his fate, Noah drags the chain and complains about his time at the firm until one day, he gets wrapped up in a case he becomes determined to solve.
The mystery in the storyline and the use of legal jargon was what really gripped me and what I also liked was how an “amateur” was prepared to take on the big guns so justice would prevail, even if it meant going against his own superiors.
Although this was found in the YA section, I recommend it for older readers too.

- Annie

[Joshua Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book. it is a first person crime, mystery but in a teenagers life. i started reading it in the library and just couldn't stop. I loved the fact that could relate to the fact that his dad was strict and he loved to take life as a joke which is me it also has mystery and makes me think which i also liked too, it has a twisted story and adds depth when you think that you've figured it out it just turns a corner and proves you wrong until the very end.i didn't like the big words and since this has a law base there were words like jury and advocate it really confused me. a character i found interesting was Berny he was the bad guy and pretended to care about his dead wife when he organized her murder it was weird because he didn't seem like the guy to make a crime so confusing and hard to figure out.

[Suzie Bookgirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

When 16 year old Noah's pranks at school finally overstep the mark he is sentenced by his father to spend his summer holiday working for his Aunt's law firm. Noah's days stretch before him in a haze of coffee runs, photocopying and avoiding Casey, the firm witch. When Noah gets himself involved in an insurance case that Casey is working things begin to get interesting. Noah discovers that things are not always as they seem and that justice is a tricky thing. Along the way he manages to involve Jacinta the cute intern and his best mate, Amit, in his shenanigans which are not always above board. Eventually Noah has to decide whether the means are justified in the end? This is a great story. The author has managed to make complex points of law accessible to a teen and use them to tell a riviting tale

[PageTurner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t usually go for the anti-authoritarian protagonist, but 16-year-old Noah’s narrative voice was rather entertaining. Noah’s intelligent-but-troublemaker voice was authentic enough without the use of heavy course language or crude references which kept things fairly innocent and fun! The chapters were short and sweet and managed to keep the law case at the centre of the story interesting.

A few things sounded a little silly to me like Noah being a chocaholic and well versed in feminism …because he comes with four sisters. But then again, those bits were funny, so no harm done ; ) Some of the breakthroughs in the case seemed a bit too good to be true. But overall the story kept me interested. It was also nice to be able to recognise where some of the settings of the story were.

[Ernest · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started of really well – the depiction of life in a law firm is one of the most realistic that I’ve read. The characters are all relatable, with many characteristics that can be seen in the people around. Had the story continued with Noah gradually discovering that things were really not as they seemed through the court process, this would have been a solid story.

Instead, unfortunately for me the book disappointingly went off the rails in Noah and friends inserting themselves so much in the case that it devolved into something utterly ludicrous (there were several law-related moments in particular that are distinctly unbelievable). Literary licence is one thing, but never at the expense of losing story credibility.

[Maria.is · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know how sometimes one tiiiiiny little detail can ruin a perfectly reasonable book?
There's just one thing that seriously annoyed me while reading this book: the fact that the University of Sydney was mentioned like ten times, on different occasions, in association with different characters.

I'd just like to point out that Australia is home to a number of prestigious institutions, and not every successful lawyer went to USYD.
End of rant haha.

Other than that, this book made for good light reading. I'd recommend to younger readers who aren't looking for something ground breaking.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love Randa Abdel-Fattah as an author. Every single book of hers I have enjoyed, and this one was not an exception to the rule. It was a brilliant book, I loved every second of it, and the mystery within it was so well constructed and written that it seemed real. There was no real emotional attachment formed, for me, to any character in this book, but it was still a really great read, and really fun.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW!!! this is awesome!!! I read this in literally 2 days - it's "un-put-down-able". Very well written. The mystery in the storyline and the use of legal jargon was what really gripped me and what I also liked was how an "amateur" was prepared to take on the big guns so justice would prevail, even if it meant going against his own superiors. Although this was found in the YA section, I recommend it for older readers too!! I hope to meet the author of this book one day!!!

[Liz Barr · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is one of those cases where a book dealt with too much of my real life to work for me -- as a legal secretary, I kept going, "But they'd never give that task to a high school work experience kid!" and "EVERYONE IN THIS FIRM SHOULD BE FIRED!"

Nevertheless, the mystery was compelling enough that I kept reading to the end, and I think that if you don't work in the legal field and deal with high school work experience kids on the regular, you probably wouldn't have my hang-ups.

[Shirley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A John Grisham young adult fiction novel. A light easy read, well written. The main character, Noah, is a likeable cheeky young boy. Anyone who enjoys law firm drama will like this book. It has a little mystery to it.

[Claude · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall, I really liked 'Noah's Law'. It had likable (well, mostly) main characters like Noah, Amit and Jacinta; a good plot; an awesome plot twist; and so many funny lines and scenes. This book was definitely worth reading and I hope I'll find the time to reread later on.

[Safiah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book, and a fun read. The storyline was exciting and made you to keep reading to find out what happens. I liked the characters and the insight that was given of law firms and court. Glad I decided to get this one :)

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

it a really cute and fun book to read,just like something to read if bored or for something to do. i really like noah and jacinta and how their relationship wasn't a big part of the book, it was more about the case which was good.

[Kaitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great for school kids. I got it a couple of years ago and found it very age appropriate. It is very witty and clever, and isn't a cliche teen book. It has a good storyline and very quick, witty characters, which makes this a hilarious book!

[Tanikah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not something i overly enjoyed but it was and alright book

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good book, helps you to understand how the law industry works, without boring you. :D

[Meaghan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I can see why students like it, it didn't engage me the way other teen fiction has this year. A little too unrealistic and Noah is not that likeable.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://fb.me/reading.blog

[Tom O'dwyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS BOOK IS BRILLIANT, so excited and funny at the same time :D

[Tjala · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this as I have enjopyeed her other books. It was humourous, the charcaters and storline were great and the first page was so gripping and hilarious!

[Georgia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's ok, good story. Got a bit boring at the end

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. Gripping and managed to keep me reading despite my bias against non-fantasy/dystopia books

[Iman]

well i am very eager to read this becoz randa came to our school today and spoke about all her books