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Why is Nobody Laughing?
Will the real Ibrahim Malik please stand up?
Ibrahim and Dexter have been best friends forever. While Dexter is always cool and confident, Ibrahim...well, Ibrahim's dealing with a lot. Hiding his passion for comedy from his family, dealing with the pressure of being the oldest child in an immigrant family, and now he's started having episodes he soon realises are panic attacks.
When Ibrahim has a panic attack on stage at a local stand-up competition, he runs off to a deserted room. There he finds Sura.
Sura is kind and helps him come to terms with his anxiety. He can open up to her in a way he's never been able to with Dexter. But there's also something strange about her - how much she knows about Ibrahim, and how she seems to disappear in an instant.
Will Ibrahim crumble under the pressure, or will Sura's words be enough to help him? And what will happen when he no longer has her help?
A powerful contemporary novel tackling teenage mental health in boys.
Perfect for fans of John Green, Alice Oseman and Holly Bourne.
Ibrahim and Dexter have been best friends forever. While Dexter is always cool and confident, Ibrahim...well, Ibrahim's dealing with a lot. Hiding his passion for comedy from his family, dealing with the pressure of being the oldest child in an immigrant family, and now he's started having episodes he soon realises are panic attacks.
When Ibrahim has a panic attack on stage at a local stand-up competition, he runs off to a deserted room. There he finds Sura.
Sura is kind and helps him come to terms with his anxiety. He can open up to her in a way he's never been able to with Dexter. But there's also something strange about her - how much she knows about Ibrahim, and how she seems to disappear in an instant.
Will Ibrahim crumble under the pressure, or will Sura's words be enough to help him? And what will happen when he no longer has her help?
A powerful contemporary novel tackling teenage mental health in boys.
Perfect for fans of John Green, Alice Oseman and Holly Bourne.
- GenresYoung AdultMental Health
Paperback
Published July 7, 2022
7 people are currently reading
218 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
December 23, 2022
This story will stay with me for a long time. I was expecting this book to be a lot funnier, but I found it to be quite serious. Panic attacks and stressful Southeast Asian family cultural expectations are deep and meaningful plot points. While the characters are Muslim, it’s not a religious book. If it weren’t for the profanity, I would recommend this title for our school library. However, southeast Asian youth growing up in Western cultures or those struggling with panic attacks would connect and benefit from reading, so I will add this to my “mental health” book list for recommendations. Thank you for a happy ending.
August 4, 2022
MORE PEOPLE SHOULD BE READING YASMIN RAHMAN'S BOOKS. Don't sleep on her books, people!
November 7, 2022
This is a lovely book about a teenage boy dealing with anxiety. Ibrahim wants to be a stand up comedian, but his family rely on him for a lot and he has started having panic attacks. The story made me cry. Ibrahim's experience and the way Rahman writes about anxiety feels so real. I liked the way that real CBT methods were woven into the story, meaning that as well as this being a lovely story, it can also teach teenage readers skills they can use in their own lives. This is a really important book about mental health, friendship, family and culture, and it's part of a bigger conversation about mens' mental health. More people should be reading this book!
November 19, 2022
Such a brilliant book. I am going to say some spoilers though so if you really want to be sure then keep on reading. I especially loved the ending, as it really explains why Sura wanted to help Ibrahim so much, although if it was anyone else who found him I'm sure they would've helped too. This tells us so much about the real life pressures children from immigrant families face in every day things. It's good Yasmin Rahman brings awareness to this and how different Ibrahim felt to his friend. This book also brings awareness to what Ibrahim is having: panic attacks. Many people have this and some embrace it. I'm glad the author decided to make Ibrahim be in denial about it. The story really flourished with his acceptance, and it also helped that he wanted to be a stand up comedian so he could face his fears in both ways, stage fright and to not have a panic attack. I like that Ibrahim was keeping being a stand up comedian a secret from his parents, as he was afraid of what they would day or do: forbid him from going. But even though he did tell them and they didn't take it as seriously, he knew it was because they didn't really understand. They thought it was just a hobby that he would grow out of. His friend obviously knew and supported him, but Ibrahim never thought that he could reach out. It took spilling everything over time to a random girl to get him to be closer to his friend and he must be grateful for that. In the end, Ibrahim did something about his panic attacks, told his friend about them, and got a lot more closer to his family. It's good that he finally went to a support group. All in all, this book was simply brilliant as it addressed serious issues with a lot of emotion to not make it as grave as it sounds.
December 16, 2024
Ibrahim Malik is best friends with Dexter Murgen. They share a common ambition: to be acclaimed for their stand-up comedy routines. Dexter’s dad fully supports him but Ibrahim is too afraid of his family’s reaction to even mention that he’s entered a competition in their town. Ibrahim’s parents are Bengali Muslims with limited English skills; they rely heavily on 16-year-old Ibrahim when paying bills, visiting the doctor, buying items online, getting the plumber in to fix things. If he isn’t there, more often than not, something goes wrong and then he has to fix it. The pressure is overwhelming; the guilt of wanting to have time for himself more than he can bear.
Only with Dexter can he be himself. But even that’s not quite true. He doesn’t dare be serious with Dexter who is such a joker that much of his comedy routine is built around his mum’s death.
When Ibrahim is heckled by some drunk patrons and experiences a panic attack during the first round of a competition, he meets Sura—a girl who claims to have just a little ‘magic’ and is able to help him begin to deal with his fears and reactions to the pressures of his life.
Only with Dexter can he be himself. But even that’s not quite true. He doesn’t dare be serious with Dexter who is such a joker that much of his comedy routine is built around his mum’s death.
When Ibrahim is heckled by some drunk patrons and experiences a panic attack during the first round of a competition, he meets Sura—a girl who claims to have just a little ‘magic’ and is able to help him begin to deal with his fears and reactions to the pressures of his life.
December 14, 2022
What even is this title. People were laughing? Like, the entire time he did his stand up, people were laughing along.
This book had me right up until the ‘magic’ came into play. That was when I started to check out. And I don’t think the epilogue helped any. It became more of a guidebook for dealing with mental health problems, while at the same time eschewing any sort of therapy or professional help, which seems dangerous and not really the sort of information to spread to teenage boys. A manic pixie dream girl will fix all their problems.
Ibrahim and Dexter have a great connection, I loved the way they ribbed and bounced off each other while showing support at the same time. But they never talked about the ‘big stuff’. Ibrahim had so much pressure on him at home, and everything was expected of him and he just had to silently shoulder it. And then it escalated dramatically. It had me tearing up a few times. But the Sura character didn’t work for me, and she plays such a huge role in the story.
This book had me right up until the ‘magic’ came into play. That was when I started to check out. And I don’t think the epilogue helped any. It became more of a guidebook for dealing with mental health problems, while at the same time eschewing any sort of therapy or professional help, which seems dangerous and not really the sort of information to spread to teenage boys. A manic pixie dream girl will fix all their problems.
Ibrahim and Dexter have a great connection, I loved the way they ribbed and bounced off each other while showing support at the same time. But they never talked about the ‘big stuff’. Ibrahim had so much pressure on him at home, and everything was expected of him and he just had to silently shoulder it. And then it escalated dramatically. It had me tearing up a few times. But the Sura character didn’t work for me, and she plays such a huge role in the story.
January 7, 2023
This was okay but it could have been better.
I think the focus of the story felt very narrow. Which is strange because his family are there, and he does have a best friend - but it is literally him, his friend, and his family for most of the book. I think it needed more scope in terms of characters, settings and also in terms of happenings? If it didn't relate to mental health or comedy, it didn't happen or get shown. And because of the narrow focus I felt the story didn't grow as much as it could've.
That said, it's nice to see a book for the age category that I don't seen enough of (preteen - early teen years) and one that tackles mental health, anxiety and culture/religion as the main focus. I liked getting to see comedy as a hobby and/or career pursuit - I haven't read and seen that too much in YA & children's books.
I did read this in about three hours in one sitting. It went down easy.
I think the focus of the story felt very narrow. Which is strange because his family are there, and he does have a best friend - but it is literally him, his friend, and his family for most of the book. I think it needed more scope in terms of characters, settings and also in terms of happenings? If it didn't relate to mental health or comedy, it didn't happen or get shown. And because of the narrow focus I felt the story didn't grow as much as it could've.
That said, it's nice to see a book for the age category that I don't seen enough of (preteen - early teen years) and one that tackles mental health, anxiety and culture/religion as the main focus. I liked getting to see comedy as a hobby and/or career pursuit - I haven't read and seen that too much in YA & children's books.
I did read this in about three hours in one sitting. It went down easy.
July 17, 2023
I am a fan of this author. I really enjoyed this book and the underlying message. There are aspects of this that I could identify with, what really pulled me out of this, was the swearing. I don’t swear, so I found it jarring. But that didn’t stop me from enjoying this book. It highlights the pressures children from immigrant families face. I liked the way Yasmin Rahman bought awareness to this, to show how different the main character felt to his friends. I liked the way the author depicted the panic attacks, those scenes were intense and if you have ever had a panic attack, you’ll understand the feeling. The story follows Ibrahim. Ibrahim and Dexter have been best friends forever. While Dexter is always cool and confident, Ibrahim is dealing with a lot. Hiding his passion for comedy from his family, dealing with the pressure of being the oldest child in an immigrant family, and now he's started having episodes he soon realises are panic attacks.
January 9, 2023
Great book! This might actually be my new favorite. I’ve never read anything that seems to understand mental health (anxiety, depression) as much as this book. I myself struggle with the mentioned mental health problems and felt very understood. This book had me in tears at some parts just because I could relate so well and really feel the emotions this book represents. If you ever feel misunderstood and like you are going crazy, read this book! First book of the year for me but I’m not sure any other book can top this.
Great work Yasmin Rahman and thanks for understanding me.
Great work Yasmin Rahman and thanks for understanding me.
October 22, 2023
This was a very beautiful story. And I loved reading it. Easily written and just lovely. I liked the ending a lot. A month or two ago I read a book that explores the element of parents coming to a different country and having to learn new ways, and relying on their kids. So this resonated with me even though I don’t personally have this experience. It just gave me a moment of understanding, and respect.
I like Yasmins style of writing, and I will keep buying her books as long as she writes them.
I like Yasmins style of writing, and I will keep buying her books as long as she writes them.
July 12, 2022
She’s done it again… AMAZING. (And I’m not just saying it because my name is in the acknowledgements I swear)
As somebody who struggles with their own MH, and who has had therapy and is taking medication… this hit home so much. Reading the parts where Ibrahim’s anxiety peaked literally made my own anxiety go mad. It was such a compelling read, so vastly different to Yasmin’s other books, but equally as great. Cannot wait to read anything she publishes next.
As somebody who struggles with their own MH, and who has had therapy and is taking medication… this hit home so much. Reading the parts where Ibrahim’s anxiety peaked literally made my own anxiety go mad. It was such a compelling read, so vastly different to Yasmin’s other books, but equally as great. Cannot wait to read anything she publishes next.
July 11, 2022
I absolutely love the writing style in this book, and the characters were just so relatable and all the little plot twists made me incapable of putting this amazing book down. It raises awareness about mental health and it had some great coping mechanisms for anxiety!
August 29, 2022
I enjoyed this teen book about a boy trying to be a stand-up comedian and also cope with his family responsibilities. It affects his mental health. I also liked the first 2 books written by Yasmin Rahman.
February 28, 2023
The ending was so heartwarming for some reason😭
March 23, 2023
Such a fantastic book that deals with anxiety in an accurate and relatable manner.
April 29, 2023
All was good except when he imagined Sura and she did supernatural things. Ruined the vibe.
May 7, 2023
An excellent book about mental health, immigrant/first generation families and friendship. Despite the title, I laughed and I also cried.
June 14, 2023
3.5 or 4 - currently unsure
July 15, 2023
Fantastic explanation of mental health and a young perspective on family life.
July 17, 2024
3.6 This is a good book dealing with issues of anxiety, panic and cultural impacts. It is a well written book that will be important to people suffering from anxiety.
December 18, 2025
A novel that echoes non fictitious messages whilst having a clear storyline- revolves around themes on mental health and touches on issues in culture. Great read for a few sittings.
July 30, 2024
I wasn't a huge fan of this book. It was really well written and Yasmin is incredible at tackling hard subjects such as mental health but this book just didn't speak to me. Yasmin's first book, all the things we never said, spoke to me and I was hooked on every single word and was obsessed with the writing style and seeing how the girls' minds worked, but we didn't really get that in this book. Also the ending with Sura and Ibrahim being joined together by dreams was really weird and I wasn't a huge fan. Ibrahim's struggle with anxiety is something so many people can relate to, and I am so glad that we are starting to talk more about men's mental health and how important it is to make sure that anybody can ask for help no matter what. Overall, it was a good book, I just didn't connect with it.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews