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Today, I review books about Ramadan and two fantastic new releases.
Bookish Goods
Ramadan Kids’ Puzzle by CafePluto
Ramadan is less than two weeks away, and a great activity for the month is to complete this Ramadan puzzle. $17
New Releases
When Moon Blooms by Aida Salazar, illustrated by Caribay M. Benavides
I didn’t intentionally choose this lovely Indigenous board book because it was moon-themed to go with the rest of this newsletter’s Ramadan theme, but it’s a delightful coincidence! This is the first book in Aida Salazar’s new board book series: My Living World. A mother explains to a child the moon’s four phases and how the child grows and changes over the four phases as well. Mami teaches the child as her ancestors taught her about the moon’s wisdom. It’s a lovely, poetic board book.
Unstuck by Barbara Dee
Lyla is having a hard time in 7th grade. Her best friend, Rania, is attending a different middle school, and Lyla is having trouble finding a new friend in school. There’s also some drama at home as her sister struggles to apply to colleges. When the English teacher assigns a creative writing assignment, Lyla is initially thrilled. She can finally write that fantasy novel she’s been wanting to write! And she can even submit it to the town creative writing competition where she hopes to beat her sister, who won second place several years earlier. However, every time she sits down to write, she’s stuck. She doesn’t know how to bring her fantasy novel to life, and this worsens as friend and home drama increases. Dee includes tips for writers in the back. This is such a relatable middle grade story!
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
Ramadan begins in less than two weeks (March 10th), so I wanted to give some Ramadan recommendations so readers have time to nab these books before the Islamic holy month begins.
Moon’s Ramadan by Natasha Khan Kazi
This is a beautifully illustrated and lyrical picture book narrated by the moon. Moon is delighted by what she sees as she peeks in on how people are celebrating Ramadan in various countries over the course of the month. She watches a family share a savory Iftar feast in Indonesia, smiles as children deliver baskets of sweets in the United Kingdom, and spins happily as she watches children have moons painted on their hands in Dubai. Meanwhile, her light changes as the month passes. The book ends with a joyous Eid celebration. Back matter includes an author’s note, glossary, and information about the lunar cycle and the phases of the moon.
Aliya’s Secret by Farida Zaman
This sweet picture book is based on the author’s childhood experiences. Aliya is so excited about Ramadan. She knows children under 13 aren’t expected to fast, but she wants to fast like her parents! Secretly, she spends a miserable day fasting, and when she gets home, she accidentally takes a bite of baklava because she’s so hungry. She bursts into tears, and her mother comforts her, telling her there’s another way for children to celebrate Ramadan instead of fasting — through acts of kindness.
Nayra and the Djinn by Iasmin Omar Ata
This charming middle grade graphic novel occurs during Ramadan. Nayra Mansour is fed up with the constant bullying because she’s only one of two Muslim students in the entire school, and it has gotten even worse during Ramadan while Nayra fasts. When a djinn, Marjan, appears and asks for Narya’s help, she agrees, but the djinn isn’t being completely honest. I love the artwork in this!
Once Upon an Eid edited by S. K. Ali and Aisha Saeed
Eid is celebrated at the end of Ramadan. This year’s will be April 9th-April 10th. This fantastic middle grade short story collection features 15 stories, poems, and comics from Muslim writers about Eid. The stories show how Eid is celebrated around the world, from Philly to a Syrian refugee camp. Stories depict blended families, sibling and friend drama, lots of food, and more. It’s the perfect book to end Ramadan reading.
My daughter spent an entire day, from sunrise to bedtime, pretending to be a teacher to her stuffed animals. She set up a classroom in the living and dining room, wrote worksheets for their morning work (I wrote half, and she did the other half), taught the students individually, read them stories, took them to art class, fixed them lunch…It was endless. We’re probably going to do it again this weekend!
If you’d like to read more of my kidlit reviews, I’m on Instagram @BabyLibrarians, Twitter @AReaderlyMom, Bluesky @AReaderlyMom.bsky.social, and blog irregularly at Baby Librarians. You can also read my Book Riot posts. If you’d like to drop me a line, my email is kingsbury.margaret@gmail.com.
All the best,
Margaret Kingsbury