Wednesday, June 27, 2018

#MuslimShelfSpace Recommendation List

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This recommendation list is partially inspired by recent events and also something I’ve wanted to do for a while. It is definitely the bare-minimum (probably not even that, tbh) and we all need to be supporting our Muslim-identifying authors, friends and foe. So here is a list of some wonderful books/authors you should have on your TBRs and should be supporting!! It is by no means a thorough list and a much much MUCH better resource would be the Hijabi Librarians blog. 

1. Written in the Stars by Aisha Saeed

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2. Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali

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3. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

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4. Love, Hate and Other Filters by Samira Ahmed

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5. Amina’s Voice by Hena Khan

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6. Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

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7. Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah

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8. If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan

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9. The Secret Sky by Atia Abawi

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10. Not the Girls You Are Looking For by Aminah Mae Safi

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11. The Gauntlet by Karuna Riazi

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12. That Thing We Call a Heart by Sheba Karim

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13. The Authentics by Abdi Nazemian

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14. Escape from Aleppo by N.H. Senzai

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Bonus

A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi

*no cover yet 🙁

Mirage by Somaiya Daud

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We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal

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Summer Road Trip: Mariam Sharma Hits the Road by Sheba Karim

Posted by on 06/25/2018 • 0 Comments

That Thing We Call a Heart was one of my favorite books of 2017 so obviously, when I heard about Mariam Sharma Hits the Road, I was ecstatic and ready to dive in. This review is particularly hard because even though, overall, I definitely enjoyed Mariam Sharma Hits the Road, there were times when I felt let down by some of the things the characters said.

I am grappling for words as I attempt to describe my feelings because I want to be respectful and clear that these experiences aren’t invalid but one of the biggest dichotomy in the book is how Mariam is raised vs how her friends are raised. Mariam grew up in a household that wasn’t religious or super connected to their cultural roots and her mom was super…

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Fresh Batch (June 24th – 30th)

Fresh Batch (June 24th – 30th)

Posted by on 06/22/2018 • 0 Comments

Fresh Batch, posted weekly, keeps you up to date on the hottest releases of the upcoming week.

Flavor of the week:

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings Edited by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman Publication date: June 26th 2018by Greenwillow Books

Goodreads Purchase

Star-crossed lovers, meddling immortals, feigned identities, battles of wits, and dire warnings: these are the stuff of fairy tale, myth, and folklore that have drawn us in for centuries.

Fifteen bestselling and acclaimed authors reimagine the folklore and mythology of East and South Asia in short stories that are by turns enchanting, heartbreaking, romantic, and passionate.

Compiled by We Need Diverse Books’s Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman, the authors included in this exquisite collection are: Renée Ahdieh, Sona Charaipotra, Preeti Chhibber, Roshani…

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Really Funny and Over-the-Top: Save the Date by Morgan Matson

Posted by on 06/21/2018 • 2 Comments

Save the Date is neither unpredictable nor does it really break any moulds. It is exactly what you would expect it to be and it is fucking amazing. If you, like me, are a connoisseur of rom-coms & chick-flicks and are upset by how few are being made lately, this book is what you deserve.

Charlie Grant’s older sister is getting married this week, her family home is being sold, and her brother who she nor her parents have spoken to in almost two years is gonna be coming back for the wedding. To add to the stress, Charlie’s long-time crush and her are feeling the sparks which makes things awkward because a certain brother is crashing with her crush instead of with the fam. Charlie just wants…

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Kid Lit Says No Kids in Cages + Five Books About Immigration Experiences You Should Read

Posted by on 06/20/2018 • 2 Comments

I think we are all aware the world is a pile of crap and yet this past week, it seems like all of that is escalating. From refugees running away from human traffickers being turned away by Italy to prove a point to incredibly young children being separated from their parents after escaping unimaginable horrors, the world truly sucks. Sometimes it can be incredibly overwhelming when many of us sit in the protection of our own homes feeling like we are unable to do anything. There is always something you can do though. Whether it is calling your representatives (no matter how shitty they are) or donating your time/money. 

Authors Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz put together the “Kid Lit Says No Kids in Cages” campaign. Donations will…

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Quiz: Commercial Vs. Literary Fiction

Posted by on 06/18/2018 • 2 Comments

I think when it comes to fiction, the general consensus seems to be that literary fiction is better than commercial fiction. I am not sure why publishing and the world seems to hold literary fiction as ‘quality’ fiction and commercial fiction as ‘cheap and redundant’ but it seems like another way to dismiss women and especially women of color because commercial fiction tends to be written more by those groups than not. Take my words with a grain of salt as I have no real stats backing up this claim but I have spent a lot of time observing and making note of the differences. Most bestsellers tend to be commercial fiction and a lot of books with a cult following tend to be commercial fiction, so why is…

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Fresh Batch (June 17th – 23rd)

Fresh Batch (June 17th – 23rd)

Posted by on 06/16/2018 • 1 Comment

Fresh Batch, posted weekly, keeps you up to date on the hottest releases of the upcoming week.

Flavor of the week:

Not the Girls You’re Looking For Aminah Mae Safi Publication date: June 19th 2018by Feiwel & Friends

Goodreads Purchase

Lulu Saad doesn’t need your advice, thank you very much. She’s got her three best friends and nothing can stop her from conquering the known world. Sure, for half a minute she thought she’d nearly drowned a cute guy at a party, but he was totally faking it. And fine, yes, she caused a scene during Ramadan. It’s all under control. Ish.

Except maybe this time she’s done a little more damage than she realizes. And if Lulu can’t find her way out of…

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On Why I Rarely Rate Books Five Stars

Posted by on 06/12/2018 • 4 Comments

At the end of every year, I like to go through and look at all of my reading stats just to get an idea of what went on in that year for my reading-wise and also because I love statistics. Last year was honestly one of the best bookish-years for me in terms of ratings. In 2017, I may not have read a lot of five star books (I think that numbed capped out at 12 out of the 230 books I read), but my average rating was 3.9. So I read a WHOLE lot of 4 star books last year and LOVED what I was reading. That is a significant improvement over average ratings from previous years and yet, I am still not reading a lot of five…

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