This 20 page story is endearing and sweet for children aged 4 and up, with a great lesson. At first I thought it was an Islamic fiction book, but after thinking about it, I’m not so sure. Lots of faiths use prayer beads, although maybe only Muslims have 33, and the setting, Lebanon, is a pretty diverse place. Regardless, the character’s names, and the lessons taught are universal and children will benefit from being reminded about how blessed they truly are, in a gentle loving way.
When little Adam’s friends go home and he has nothing to do, he enters his grandparents house stomping and complaining. In response, Adam’s Jidoo, grandfather, starts to laugh. This only makes Adam more angry.
Jidoo Yousef then shows Adam his misbaha and explains that some people use it like an abacus to count, to mark prayers, some use it as decor, and that he uses it to remember God’s blessings.
He and Adam, then go around and count all the blessings of toys, and people, and friends, and family, and food, and before Adam knows it, he is feeling blessed and thankful.
The basic illustrations show the bond between Jidoo and Adam, but are nothing overly fabulous on the large 8.5 x 11 pages. There is a lot of text on some of the pages, but it flows well and goes quickly.
The book teaches a great lesson and if you get a chance to read it to your children, you definitely should.
A story about Hajar (saa), about Zamzam, about Hajj, and how we are all connected through our faith in Allah. In 32 water color adorned pages, the rhyming couplets tell a well-known historical story for children of all ages, with Hajar front and center.
Islamic School Librarian 