Janmohamed, Shelina Zahra. Love In A Headscarf.

Janmohamed, Shelina Zahra Love In A Headscarf
Beacon Press 2010 257p 15.00
978-0-8070-0080-9 hs/adult Janmohamed, Shelina Zahra -- Diaries E-BN


A beautifully written memoir that not only discusses arranged marriage and love, but presents Muslim society, family and Islamic faith with honesty and humor. A wonderful antidote for so much of today’s negative view of the Muslim world. Ms. Janmohamed shares her search for the perfect mate in a society that often is portrayed as not valuing women. This memoir walks the reader through match making process as arranged by her aunts (very colorful figures in their own right) and ‘professional’ matchmakers. While this process was quite interesting, this reader found the insight into Ms. Janmohamed’s life more intriguing. Beginning with her parent’s willingness (nee insistence) on her getting a higher education, to their understanding of her need to travel and explore the world outside of muslim societies, this memoir does a lot to dispel so many of the stereotypes many of us hold about women in the muslim world, as well as the Qu’ran and Islam in this post-911 United States. We read how she goes through the ups and downs of her self worth and self-esteem, how she recognizes that her strength is her faith and education, and how in the end the right man crosses her path and they create a life together.
As I was reading this memoir, there were times when I skipped paragraphs, but for the most it is very well written and is a book that draws the reader through the pages. Fisher, Lynn

Senzai, N.H. Shooting Kabul

Senzai, N.H. Shooting Kabul
Simon & Schuster/Little Brown 2010 272p 16.99
978-1-4424-0194-5 elm/ms Realistic Fiction VG
Afghan family faces challenges as the Taliban takes over in Afghanistan. While trying to escape, they lose daughter Mariam in the turmoil but must leave anyway, to face life in the post 9/11 San Francisco area. Guiltridden, Fadi faces trying to survive in school and to find a way to save Mariam. Books like Shooting Kabul can be powerful tools to show children what is happening in other cultures. N. H. Senzai uses her pen to help us understand a different perspective, that of the typical Afghan family who faces great change, both in Afghanistan after the Taliban takes over and in the U. S., after 9/11. We can only imagine the despair when Fadi loses his sister Mariam during his family’s daring escape from Afghanistan. Fearing death at the hands of the Taliban, Habib takes his wife, Fadi and remaining sister Noor and escapes to San Francisco. Habib is certain that Mariam will be found at one of the many refugee camps someday soon. Fadi doesn’t only face tremendous guilt, but also must survive at his new school where Muslim’s, especially Afghanis and Iraqis, are bullied after 9/11. A parallel story evolves, showing how Fadi enters a photography contest to try to win first prize, a trip to India. Naturally, Fadi expects to win because he wills it so, certain that he can find Mariam on his own by winning the trip! Another conflict that Fadi faces is revenge. Should he follow his heart and turn the other cheek, or join his newfound friends, other bullied children, in seeking revenge on school bullies Felix and Ike. In the end, the group of misfits, under Fadi’s leadership, turns the other cheek and does not seek revenge. Senzai’s explanations of the situation in Afghanistan, the need for our country to find Al Quaeda following 9/11 and the prejudices that surfaced across the United States are clarified for younger readers. The plot is fast-moving and interesting. Facing our fears about terrorism parallels the fears that a bullied child must face when confronted by a bully, and this theme shines as Senzai weaves the conflicts of her tale together. This book is best for upper elementary school and middle school libraries. Its strength lies in its clarity in explaining the difficulties faced by Muslims who live in our country. Squaresky, Martha