This is the fifth book in the Eliyas Explains series, and it really is what you would expect and hope, a book about Ramadan from Zanib Mian would be. Eliyas’s voice is funny, relatable, engaging, and yet somehow manages to find a clear way to inform too. The framing is fictional, but the book is meant to be lesson, moral, and information filled. The voice did seem to break when Eliya’s didn’t know what “Ramadan Mubarak” meant, but it is clear that the book is meant to teach and remind middle grade kids about Ramadan from moon sighting to Eid, so I don’t think anyone other than an old reviewer would notice. Parents might notice though that Eliyas loses his cool at one point and starts to presumably call his sister stupid, it stops at “st,” but then says he “started to cuss” which in America would be taken to mean a profanity much stronger than stupid, so just be aware, so you don’t panic if your child asks. Overall the book is great, it is a solid 80 pages before the guided journaling begins and concludes at 115 pages. The illustrations, changing font, and humor really make it perfect for the age group. I gave it to my eight year old to read and I could hear him laughing, saying a few dua’as aloud, and he even came and asked me a few questions making sure he understood new information correctly. This book would work as an independent read, a read aloud, or even an elementary reading assignment in an Islamic or weekend school. The book is remarkable for the simple fact that it starts by naming the scholar that proofed the book, truly this is revolutionary, please can we normalize sourcing already.
The book is divided into chapters, with chapter one reintroducing Eliyas and his family to the reader. They are out on a bike ride and Eliya’s wants to know why everyone is so excited for Ramadan and giving up food and water. Mom and dad explain taqwa and good deeds being multiplied and prayers being answered and big shaytans being locked up and Eliyas is excited (to put it mildly) to get closer to Allah swt and be a better version of himself.
Chapter two explains the moon, making intention, and waking up for suhoor. With nine chapters before the journaling, the book discusses doing good deeds, fighting, forgiveness, shaytan being locked up, taraweeh, Laylatul Qader, and Eid.
The journaling guides readers through forgiveness, ibadah, goals, duas, kindness, feelings, connecting with Allah swt and more. The beauty of this book is that it does pack a lot of information, but it shows a lot too, and gives kids a way to see Ramadan in action.
There are so few Palestinian middle grade books, so on that premise alone this 216 page book has a lot of value. Because I am not Palestinian, I do not live, nor have I ever lived under occupation, I can argue some of the concerns from a point of privilege, and I acknowledge that is not my right. I have been asked numerous times about this book and how it frames the suicide bombing mentioned in the text and blurbed about on the back of the book. It honestly is not a large part of the story, that being said, in my outside privileged view, I do not know that a 10 year old in the west will have context to understand the act of this level of desperation from the oppression and humiliation mentioned in the book. This is why I have held off my review. The truth does not need to be defended or explained, and I fear my reservations will be taken as such, which is not my intention. Would I let me 8 year old read this, yes, but we will read it together and discuss. My children are aware of what is going on in Palestine, but Karim, the 12-year-old protagonist supports the bomber, and that notion is not clearly pushed back on. With discussion, absolutely, I think readers, will truly get Karim’s perspective that something has to be done to change the status quo. The fear when Karim is alone and the target of soldiers, the settlers forcibly seizing the family land, the humiliation of strip searching men at checkpoints, the curfews, and constant fear of attack and imprisonment are all presented through the main character’s eyes, and would also do better with some discussion, so that empathy and duas and action can result. But, the commentary as to the suicide bombing are minimal, there is even a prank package bombing that is presented as rebellion by a side character, and I would worry how a young child, without guidance, would internalize it. Additionally, this is yet another difficult book for me to review, primarily because it was first published in 2003, and because I don’t know how much comes from a western gaze and how much the Palestinian voice played into it. Islam is clear on the prohibition of suicide. In the early 2000 the news out of Israel was often about such attacks, but as an outsider, I honestly do not know if it was simply Israeli propaganda and stereotypes amplifying the idea as part of their public relations strategy or reality, seeing as now that Palestinians have direct outlets to share their daily life under an oppressive occupation, there is rarely talk of suicide bombing attacks. The author states on her website:
Islamic School Librarian 