Kids & YA Books
Here is my latest list of book recommendations for children and young adults, whether for libraries, schools, or homes. These focus on Arabic language and culture (my specialty), but I’ve included bonus Spanish selections at the end. I have read all these books and hope you will enjoy them too!
Kids:
Salma the Syrian Chef by Danny Ramadan – A Syrian girl figures out how to help her mother and herself feel more at home in Vancouver, Canada. See here for more details.
Yaffa and Fatima by Fawzia Gilani-Williams – Two friends, one Jewish and one Arab, surprise one another with their kindness for one another. See here for more details.
The Sandwich Swap by Rania Al-Abdullah – Two friends at school secretly find one another’s typical lunch sandwiches disgusting until they try swapping them one day. See here for more details.
The Golden Sandal: A Middle Eastern Cinderella Story by Rebecca Hickox Ayres – A variation of the “Cinderella” folktale common in many cultures, this version is set in Iraq. See here for more details.
Mirror by Jeannie Baker – With no words, this book consists of collage artwork that tells a story of two boys and their families in two locations: Sydney in Australia and the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. Accessible beyond language barriers; shows similarities and differences. See here for more details.
The Jasmine Sneeze by Nadine Kaadan – An imaginative story of a cat and a jasmine spirit in Damascus, Syria. See here for more details.
Calabash Cat by James Rumford
The story of a cat who goes on a journey and learns about the vastness of the world and different perspectives. In English with Chadian Arabic artistically rendered. See here for more details.
Middle Grade (ages 8-12):
The Turtle of Oman by Naomi Shihab Nye
A boy prepares reluctantly to leave his home in Oman to live in Michigan for his parents’ graduate studies. See here for more details.
High School:
The Green Bicycle by Haifaa al Mansour – A girl growing up in Saudi Arabia faces challenges in her home, school, and society. See here for more details.
The Servant by Fatima Sharafeddine (Arabic title: فاتن ) – A teenage girl, who works as a household servant for a wealthy family in contemporary Beirut, aims to finish her studies and follow her dreams. See here for more details: Arabic | English
Siraaj by Radwa Ashour (Arabic title: سراج) – An imaginary story of the search for freedom, inspired by nineteenth-century realities. A rare depiction of Sub-Saharan African culture in the Arab region. English translation by Barabara Romaine. More details here. For Arabic, see here.
Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin – A reimagining of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice set among South-Asian immigrant families in Toronto, Canada. See here for more details.
Halide’s Gift by Frances Kazan – A fictional account of the historical Halide Edib, the first Turkish girl to attend the American girls’ school in Istanbul. (Admittedly not Arabic, but might be of interest to readers nonetheless.) See here for more details.
Arabic-Only Bonus:
For little ones, my favorite board book is القنفذ كيوي by Noura Noman, about some kids who find a hedgehog one day while playing treasure hunt. See here for more details.
Spanish Bonus:
I’ve been enjoying reading bilingual (Spanish/English) books by Lynn Reiser with my 4-year-old, especially The Lost Ball/La pelota perdida. For myself, I’ve started the young adult novel La Ciudad de las Bestias (City of the Beasts) by Isabel Allende. It’s also available in audiobook form.
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