Curated by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books)
Discovering stories that reflect a range of experiences and perspectives is one of the joys of reading. In this post, we’re highlighting five powerful books featuring Muslim characters, drawing from our past reviews. Each of these books offers a unique glimpse into the lives, challenges, and triumphs of Muslim characters, giving readers the opportunity to see the world through different lenses. Whether you're looking for a moving contemporary story, a rich historical narrative, or a thought-provoking exploration of identity and faith, these books are sure to resonate.
ONCE UPON AN EID - A Beautiful and Sweeping Collection Celebrating the Joy of Eid (Ashley's review):
From the review: "This collection is a gorgeous middle-grade work, and it conveys a wide array of different experiences, all of which center on Muslims celebrating Eid. The stories depict celebrations of both Eid-al-Adha and Eid-al-Fitr. As you may well know, both Eids follow the lunar calendar, so the dates change from year to year. Eid-al-Fitr, the "feast of breaking the fast," marks the end of Ramadan. Eid-al-Adha is the "feast of the sacrifice," and it celebrates Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience. The book includes celebrations of both Eids."
From the review: "Shadi's life is in shambles. It's 2003, and the U.S. is at war with Iraq, which means that Shadi is facing increased attacks at school, an easy and visible target because of the hijab she wears. Her older brother is dead; she and her sister are in constant, low-level conflict; her father is in the hospital; and her mother is unable to overcome her depression and grief. For a while, Shadi's best friend, Zahra, seems to be someone she can count on, but then Zahra ends their friendship. That also means that Zahra's brother Ali and her parents are no longer support for Shadi, either. Shadi is lost, anchorless."
Safia Elhillo's HOME IS NOT A COUNTRY - Finding a Way to Inner Peace (Ashley's review):
From the review: "Living alone with her mom and separated from the homeland where her mother grew up, Nima feels that she doesn't really belong anywhere. She clings to the music and movies of her homeland and feels deep longing for her father who died before she was born. Her only solace is in relationship with her lifelong friend Haitham, but when that relationship crumbles, she feels completely unmoored. Between instances of bullying and outright attacks on her heritage, Nima feels shame, disappointment, and bitterness, and she and her mother both find their world getting smaller and smaller as they turn away from the cruelty of the world surrounding them."
Hena Khan's AMINA'S VOICE - A Powerful Own Voices Middle Grade Read (Ashley's Review):
From the review: "I loved this beautiful story so very much. In Amina's Voice by Hena Khan (which would be appropriate for upper elementary students as well as middle or high), Amina is starting middle school. She has the struggles every kid that age has -- where does she fit in? how does she adjust as her friends change? -- but she also has struggles related to her specific experience as a Muslim Pakistani American child of immigrant parents growing up in a community where she sometimes feels like an outsider."
Priyanka Taslim’s THE LOVE MATCH - Jane Austen with a Twist (Jen's review):
From the review: "Zahra Kahn is a Bangladeshi American teenager who has just graduated from high school. She lives with her mother and two younger siblings in a small apartment in Paterson, New Jersey, where they try to make ends meet after her father’s death several years before. (This book is billed as a retelling of Pride and Prejudice, but there are some elements of Sense and Sensibility woven in, too!) Zahra was accepted to Columbia University but knows her family can’t afford either the tuition or the loss of her income, so she has deferred her acceptance. Now, she’s trying to figure out what her future might be as she works at the tea shop owned by her friends’ family."
(A note to our readers: click on the hashtags above to see our other blog posts with the same hashtag.)
Interested in what else we're reading? Check out our Featured Books page.
Loving what you see here? Please comment below (scroll ALL the way down to comment), share this post using the social media buttons below (scroll down for those as well!), and find us on social media to share your thoughts!
Want to support Unabridged?
Check out our Merch Store!
Become a patron on Patreon.
Follow us @unabridgedpod on Instagram.
Like and follow our Facebook Page.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Check out our Teachers Pay Teachers store.
Follow us @unabridgedpod on Twitter.
Subscribe to our podcast and rate us on Apple Podcasts or on Stitcher.
Check us out on Podbean.
We are proud to partner with Bookshop.org and have a curated Unabridged store as well as affiliate links. We're also honored to be a partner with Libro.fm and proudly use affiliate links to support them and independent bookstores.
Komentáře