Culture/Identity
Abdel-Fattah, Randa. Does My Head Look Big in This. Scholastic, Inc. 2008. ISBN-13: 9780439922333 Muslim
Australian 11th-grader Amal is smart, funny, outspoken, a good student, and a loyal friend. She is also a devout Muslim who decides to wear the hijab, or head covering, full-time. The story tells of her emotional and spiritual journey as she copes with a mad crush on a boy, befriends an elderly Greek neighbor, and tries to help a friend who aspires to be a lawyer but whose well-intentioned mother is trying to force her to leave school and get married. Amal is also battling the misconceptions of non-Muslims about her religion and culture. While the novel deals with a number of serious issues, it is extremely funny and entertaining, and never preachy or forced. The details of Amal's family and social life are spot-on, and the book is wonderful at showing the diversity within Muslim communities and in explaining why so many women choose to wear the hijab. Amal is an appealing and believable character. She trades verbal jibes with another girl, she is impetuous and even arrogant at times, and she makes some serious errors of judgment. And by the end of the story, she and readers come to realize that "Putting on the hijab isn't the end of the journey. It's just the beginning of it."
Abdel-Fattah, Randa. Ten Things I Hate About Me. Scholastic, Inc. 2009. ISBN-13: 9780545050555 720L Muslim
Lebanese-Australian Jamilah has two lives. At school she is blond-haired, blue-eyed (thanks to contact lenses) Jamie. At home she is Jamilah, a rebellious, but dutiful, daughter of a strict, widowed father. She keeps both her Muslim and Lebanese identities a secret at her high school because the most popular students make fun of anyone who is even vaguely "ethnic." The warm, nurturing nature of her home life (even with its limitations) is often contrasted to the cold environment in the homes of some of her friends. Not surprisingly, over the course of the book, her perspective changes. By the end, Jamilah decides to be herself in a very public and satisfying way.
Alvarez, Julia. Once Upon a Quinceanera. Penguin Group. 2008. ISBN-13: 9780452288300 Latin America
Alvarez uses the phenomenon of Sweet 15 parties for Latina girls to explore issues of . . . herself. Originally, the quincea-era was a party thrown to celebrate a girl's passage into marriageable womanhood when she turned 15, which is-or was until recently-the legal age of consent for females in much of Latin America. The parties are lavish affairs, with the dresses tending toward puffy and the ambience tending toward princessy. The specifics are extremely malleable, however, with traditions from Cuba and the Dominican Republic thrown into the Latin American mix. Like any marketable cultural phenomenon, the celebrations have been seized upon by the party industry; gown makers and planners stand ready to help parents spend thousands of dollars they don't have, while conventions and a trade magazine advise the professionals. Alvarez inserts herself into a number of quincea-eras (which she then melds into one for dramatic purposes), trying to figure out why the phenomenon has taken off in America in recent years and what it says about the Latin American experience. Unfortunately, the girls themselves are hardly illuminating: "It's like part of my culture" is a typical quote. Alvarez is no help either, using the topic of quincea-eras primarily as a creaky springboard to launch into windy, maudlin ruminations on growing up as a Dominican immigrant in Queens. With such a narcissistic narrator, it's no surprise the girls were less than forthcoming.
Antieau, Kim. Broken Moon. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing. 2007. ISBN-13: 9781416917670 670L Pakistan
Scarred physically and psychologically by Pakistani traditionalists who avenged her brother's alleged assault on another girl by cutting his sister's face and body, Nadira accepts that she has been ruined. Now 18, she focuses her love on her 6-year-old brother, entertaining him with stories from "A Thousand and One Nights." Her father is dead and she works as a servant in a Karachi household to support Umar and their mother, who live with cruel Uncle Rubel. When he sells Umar to kidnappers who take children to the desert to become camel jockeys, she disguises herself as a boy to follow him. In the Bedouin country she tames young bullies as well as the fastest camel, hoping to be allowed to go to the races where she might encounter her brother and win their freedom. Nadira's forbearance and skillful storytelling make her sad situation bearable, and the romantically happy ending will satisfy readers caught up in her life. The first-person account is presented as a narrative written for Umar to read at some later date.
Barakat, Ibtisam. Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 2007. ISBN-13: 9780374357337 870L Palestine
The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians has now spanned nearly six decades. In that time, both nations have become increasingly entrenched in conflicting perspectives that seem to lead to nothing but more suffering. While the day-to-day political realities of this ongoing conflict splash themselves across the pages and airwaves of international media the direct impact these events have on individuals is sometimes lost. In Ibtisam Barakat's autobiography, these personal happenings play out for readers to see and ponder. In this touching book, the author starts her tale when she is only six years old. At that time, the 1967 Six Days War has just begun and Ibtisam and her family are forced to flee from oncoming Israeli soldiers. Over the course of this personal story readers see the effects that war has on children caught in its path. The Barakat family loses their home, family solidarity, and all the safety they once knew. Over time, Ibtisam and her family reestablish their lives but in such a manner that it will never be the same as the existence they had once known and trusted. This is a powerful book and one that sheds light on life in a place and time that continues to plague not only the residents of these war torn region, but also the world at large.
Bush, Jenna. Ana’s Story: A Journey of Hope. HarperCollins Publishers. 2007. ISBN-13: 9780061379086 850L Latin America/Aids
Ana's Story: A Journey of Hope is a work of narrative nonfiction based on Jenna Bush's experiences while interning for UNICEF and documenting lives of children and teens she encountered through her work. The book focuses on Ana, a teenage single mother who is bravely living with, rather than dying from, HIV. Ana's determination has allowed her to overcome abuse and abandonment and fight for an education and a better future for her child. Inspired by the framework of one girl's life, it is also the story of many children around the world who are marginalized and excluded from basic care, support, and education. Jenna Bush sends a message of hope, inclusion and survival, and calls for youth involvement in helping other young people triumph over adversity.
Chotjewitz, David. Crazy Diamond. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing. 2008. ISBN-13: 9781416911760 660L Europe
Beginning with a startling scene in which newly successful German pop star Mira M. is discovered floating face down in an aquarium, her body seeping blood from small holes the resident eel has bitten into her skin, this novel is a dramatic view of the fast-paced music scene in Hamburg. As a child, Mira was smuggled from Croatia to Germany in a guitar amplifier case by her uncle. As a runaway teen, she was befriended by another young homeless girl who later helped rescue three stowaway Ghanaian refugees from a shipping container on the Hamburg docks. This circle of friends grew to include Zucka, a young man from a more conventional background. His music-producer father helped first Melody, one of the girls from Ghana, and then Mira rise to fame. The author's depictions of Melody's growing jealousy as her failing career was supplanted by Mira's newfound success and Mira's reluctance to embrace fame with its accompanying interviews, clamoring fans, and grueling touring schedules give readers insightful glimpses into the friends' complex relationships. Using the aquarium as a symbol for the "fishbowl" lifestyle Mira struggles against is effective, as is the use of different typefaces to indicate portions of text being spoken by the dead girl or by other characters as they look back on events leading up to Mira's death. The labeling of chapters as if they were tracks on a CD is another constant reminder of the music scene. Older teens will find this a fascinating account of an aspect of contemporary European culture that has many parallels in the U.S.
Sandell, Lisa. The Weight of the Sky. Penguin Group. 2006. ISBN-13: 9780670060283 Israel
Sarah Green, 16, is one of two Jewish students at her small Pennsylvania high school. A self-described band geek, she is tormented by the popular clique and overburdened by her feeling that her "religion is a conscious decision every day" of her life. When her parents offer to send her to Israel for the summer, she jumps at the chance to assert her independence, reinvent herself in a new place, and live and work on a kibbutz. While her journey to find herself is not without hardship and challenges, and her idealistic view of Israel and kibbutz life is shattered, Sarah survives the summer transformed, with a new sense of Jewish identity, a deeper connection to the land of Israel, increased self-confidence, and a more mature awareness of her own sexuality.
Australian 11th-grader Amal is smart, funny, outspoken, a good student, and a loyal friend. She is also a devout Muslim who decides to wear the hijab, or head covering, full-time. The story tells of her emotional and spiritual journey as she copes with a mad crush on a boy, befriends an elderly Greek neighbor, and tries to help a friend who aspires to be a lawyer but whose well-intentioned mother is trying to force her to leave school and get married. Amal is also battling the misconceptions of non-Muslims about her religion and culture. While the novel deals with a number of serious issues, it is extremely funny and entertaining, and never preachy or forced. The details of Amal's family and social life are spot-on, and the book is wonderful at showing the diversity within Muslim communities and in explaining why so many women choose to wear the hijab. Amal is an appealing and believable character. She trades verbal jibes with another girl, she is impetuous and even arrogant at times, and she makes some serious errors of judgment. And by the end of the story, she and readers come to realize that "Putting on the hijab isn't the end of the journey. It's just the beginning of it."
Abdel-Fattah, Randa. Ten Things I Hate About Me. Scholastic, Inc. 2009. ISBN-13: 9780545050555 720L Muslim
Lebanese-Australian Jamilah has two lives. At school she is blond-haired, blue-eyed (thanks to contact lenses) Jamie. At home she is Jamilah, a rebellious, but dutiful, daughter of a strict, widowed father. She keeps both her Muslim and Lebanese identities a secret at her high school because the most popular students make fun of anyone who is even vaguely "ethnic." The warm, nurturing nature of her home life (even with its limitations) is often contrasted to the cold environment in the homes of some of her friends. Not surprisingly, over the course of the book, her perspective changes. By the end, Jamilah decides to be herself in a very public and satisfying way.
Alvarez, Julia. Once Upon a Quinceanera. Penguin Group. 2008. ISBN-13: 9780452288300 Latin America
Alvarez uses the phenomenon of Sweet 15 parties for Latina girls to explore issues of . . . herself. Originally, the quincea-era was a party thrown to celebrate a girl's passage into marriageable womanhood when she turned 15, which is-or was until recently-the legal age of consent for females in much of Latin America. The parties are lavish affairs, with the dresses tending toward puffy and the ambience tending toward princessy. The specifics are extremely malleable, however, with traditions from Cuba and the Dominican Republic thrown into the Latin American mix. Like any marketable cultural phenomenon, the celebrations have been seized upon by the party industry; gown makers and planners stand ready to help parents spend thousands of dollars they don't have, while conventions and a trade magazine advise the professionals. Alvarez inserts herself into a number of quincea-eras (which she then melds into one for dramatic purposes), trying to figure out why the phenomenon has taken off in America in recent years and what it says about the Latin American experience. Unfortunately, the girls themselves are hardly illuminating: "It's like part of my culture" is a typical quote. Alvarez is no help either, using the topic of quincea-eras primarily as a creaky springboard to launch into windy, maudlin ruminations on growing up as a Dominican immigrant in Queens. With such a narcissistic narrator, it's no surprise the girls were less than forthcoming.
Antieau, Kim. Broken Moon. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing. 2007. ISBN-13: 9781416917670 670L Pakistan
Scarred physically and psychologically by Pakistani traditionalists who avenged her brother's alleged assault on another girl by cutting his sister's face and body, Nadira accepts that she has been ruined. Now 18, she focuses her love on her 6-year-old brother, entertaining him with stories from "A Thousand and One Nights." Her father is dead and she works as a servant in a Karachi household to support Umar and their mother, who live with cruel Uncle Rubel. When he sells Umar to kidnappers who take children to the desert to become camel jockeys, she disguises herself as a boy to follow him. In the Bedouin country she tames young bullies as well as the fastest camel, hoping to be allowed to go to the races where she might encounter her brother and win their freedom. Nadira's forbearance and skillful storytelling make her sad situation bearable, and the romantically happy ending will satisfy readers caught up in her life. The first-person account is presented as a narrative written for Umar to read at some later date.
Barakat, Ibtisam. Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 2007. ISBN-13: 9780374357337 870L Palestine
The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians has now spanned nearly six decades. In that time, both nations have become increasingly entrenched in conflicting perspectives that seem to lead to nothing but more suffering. While the day-to-day political realities of this ongoing conflict splash themselves across the pages and airwaves of international media the direct impact these events have on individuals is sometimes lost. In Ibtisam Barakat's autobiography, these personal happenings play out for readers to see and ponder. In this touching book, the author starts her tale when she is only six years old. At that time, the 1967 Six Days War has just begun and Ibtisam and her family are forced to flee from oncoming Israeli soldiers. Over the course of this personal story readers see the effects that war has on children caught in its path. The Barakat family loses their home, family solidarity, and all the safety they once knew. Over time, Ibtisam and her family reestablish their lives but in such a manner that it will never be the same as the existence they had once known and trusted. This is a powerful book and one that sheds light on life in a place and time that continues to plague not only the residents of these war torn region, but also the world at large.
Bush, Jenna. Ana’s Story: A Journey of Hope. HarperCollins Publishers. 2007. ISBN-13: 9780061379086 850L Latin America/Aids
Ana's Story: A Journey of Hope is a work of narrative nonfiction based on Jenna Bush's experiences while interning for UNICEF and documenting lives of children and teens she encountered through her work. The book focuses on Ana, a teenage single mother who is bravely living with, rather than dying from, HIV. Ana's determination has allowed her to overcome abuse and abandonment and fight for an education and a better future for her child. Inspired by the framework of one girl's life, it is also the story of many children around the world who are marginalized and excluded from basic care, support, and education. Jenna Bush sends a message of hope, inclusion and survival, and calls for youth involvement in helping other young people triumph over adversity.
Chotjewitz, David. Crazy Diamond. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing. 2008. ISBN-13: 9781416911760 660L Europe
Beginning with a startling scene in which newly successful German pop star Mira M. is discovered floating face down in an aquarium, her body seeping blood from small holes the resident eel has bitten into her skin, this novel is a dramatic view of the fast-paced music scene in Hamburg. As a child, Mira was smuggled from Croatia to Germany in a guitar amplifier case by her uncle. As a runaway teen, she was befriended by another young homeless girl who later helped rescue three stowaway Ghanaian refugees from a shipping container on the Hamburg docks. This circle of friends grew to include Zucka, a young man from a more conventional background. His music-producer father helped first Melody, one of the girls from Ghana, and then Mira rise to fame. The author's depictions of Melody's growing jealousy as her failing career was supplanted by Mira's newfound success and Mira's reluctance to embrace fame with its accompanying interviews, clamoring fans, and grueling touring schedules give readers insightful glimpses into the friends' complex relationships. Using the aquarium as a symbol for the "fishbowl" lifestyle Mira struggles against is effective, as is the use of different typefaces to indicate portions of text being spoken by the dead girl or by other characters as they look back on events leading up to Mira's death. The labeling of chapters as if they were tracks on a CD is another constant reminder of the music scene. Older teens will find this a fascinating account of an aspect of contemporary European culture that has many parallels in the U.S.
Sandell, Lisa. The Weight of the Sky. Penguin Group. 2006. ISBN-13: 9780670060283 Israel
Sarah Green, 16, is one of two Jewish students at her small Pennsylvania high school. A self-described band geek, she is tormented by the popular clique and overburdened by her feeling that her "religion is a conscious decision every day" of her life. When her parents offer to send her to Israel for the summer, she jumps at the chance to assert her independence, reinvent herself in a new place, and live and work on a kibbutz. While her journey to find herself is not without hardship and challenges, and her idealistic view of Israel and kibbutz life is shattered, Sarah survives the summer transformed, with a new sense of Jewish identity, a deeper connection to the land of Israel, increased self-confidence, and a more mature awareness of her own sexuality.