Tag Archives: talent show

Jun5

Sam(ira)’s (Worst) Best Summer by Nina Hamza

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Sam(ira)’s (Worst) Best Summer by Nina Hamza

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The first 15% of this 336 page book were rough, the internalized Islamophobia/othering, the excessive discussion of Halloween and being toilet papered, but then I don’t know, something suddenly changed, and I was hooked.  There really is no plot, the reader just spends the summer with Samira, the highs the lows, you see it all through her tween eyes, which worked great for me because I truly loved her voice.  Her dry witty humor, the short choppy chapters, once the forced Islamic rep faded (I know, the irony is not lost on me), the book was hard to put down.  It has Muslamic flags: music is a HUGE part of the book, there is lying, mention of beer, parties with boys, Halloween, dancing, bullying, racism, ageism, Islamophobia, stereotypes, but it also has a lot of heart, finding yourself and voice, amazing sibling support, community, a super grandma, a little brother who is on the spectrum and absolutely a star who holds his own. It is very idyllic even for middle grade, but I think if you are ok with the aforementioned flags and have a middle grader trying to find their place or has had some friend trouble, this book will resonate and be well loved.

SYNOPSIS:
Sam/Sammy/Samira is wrapping up a school year that did not go as planned even though she found she loved being a photographer for the yearbook. She had a huge falling out with her best friend Keira, and she cannot wait for a summer of never leaving her room.  Her parents and older sister are heading to India, leaving her with her little brother Imran, and Umma, their Grandma who came from India to watch them. The end of school culminates with the yearbooks being delayed, her house being toilet papered, the talent show performance that she quit- being completely changed and incredibly racist, Keira spreading lies, and a new girl moving in to the neighborhood.  It is a lot for Samira, and summer is just getting started.  Umma knows the whole neighborhood before the week is out, and starts building a community that rallies around the three of them.  Samira becomes a roadie for a band, Imran gets an old artist to teach him to paint, parties are planned, voices are found, friendships are established, and videos are made celebrating the success and obstacles of it all.  Every time they call the rest of the family in India, even the reader realizes just how much they all have grown.

WHY I LIKE IT:

I just love Samira, she is relatable, funny, and you just cheer for her. I wish her lens though was Islamic.  She doesn’t wear a swimsuit because she misread the dress code, but had no Islamic perspective hesitation of going to a swimming party with boys.  She gets blamed for sneaking beer to a gathering and it says she doesn’t drink, but doesn’t stress, that it would be a huge, huge deal Islamically, not just because she is underage.  Music and dancing aren’t even blips on the radar. Umma prays, Sammy finds it annoying that her prayers seem to take longer when Sammy is waiting for her.  Once it mentions that Sammy was told to pray, but it never shows her praying.  Islam seems very forced, just enough for the character to mention Islamophobia in other instances where the label creates stress for the family.

The character development of Imran and Umma, even though they don’t change at all, has depth and grounds the story. I read a digital copy that doesn’t have any backmatter, but I do hope that the autistic rep is accurate.  Imran’s perspective and heart are so engaging and his and Samira’s relationship is very tender.  There is no pity, or looking down, he legit is fully fleshed out and awesome.  Umma is incredible too, her magic network of getting things done really is a super power.  She connects with people, has a huge heart, and picks her battles.  I wish I could take an internship from Umma.

I can’t figure out if the resolution to the “climax” is intentionally understated because Samira has moved on and grown, and having a big explosion doesn’t fit her character, or if it was just not written strong enough.  That is why I put climax in quotations, because there really isn’t a lead up, or rising action, it is a progression, but it is like the rest of the smaller ups and downs, it is just a stress of the day-to-day living of the protagonist.  The other thread of the “climax” being Alice’s grandma coming home from the hospital, really just seemed weak.  She should have come to the party in her wheelchair, I really didn’t get why it centered the party for being for her, but then let her leave.

I like that Keira wasn’t given redeeming qualities, and her treatment of Samira was never justified.  Often the bullies are shown to have hard lives, which is fine, but sometimes they are just mean.  Samira really takes the high road in handling Keira and what she wants their interactions to look like in the future, which is much better messaging than most books about bullies contain, and I really appreciate that.  

FLAGS:

Bullying, racism, stereotypes, lying, Islamophobia, agism, mocking, teasing, music, dancing, vandalism, mention of Halloween and beer.

TOOLS FOR LEADING THE DISCUSSION: It wouldn’t be possible to do this as a book club selection in an Islamic school because of the music element, but depending on the school, it might still be ok to shelve in classrooms and the library.

Apr12

Shiny Misfits by Maysoon Zayid and Shadia Amin

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Shiny Misfits by Maysoon Zayid and Shadia Amin

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I admittedly wanted to read this book because the author is of Palestinian descent. I have seen clips of her standup and I’m not a huge fan, although I do appreciate that she doesn’t deny her culture and Islam, doesn’t let her cerebral palsy keep her from working toward her dreams, and that she is successful.  All good messages for a 256 page middle grade graphic novel that is not autobiographical, but draws on her life none-the-less.  I was surprised, though, that there are no Palestinian references in the book, very few Arab cultural touchstones either, and yet swearing on the Quran and not eating pork are presented fairly often, almost as “bits” to be laughed at.  I truly understand that the character is presented as culturally Muslim more than centering Islam in her identity, but perhaps because the protagonist, Bay Ann, is rather unlikeable, it just rubbed me the wrong way.  I love that the people in Bay Ann’s life do not caudle her, and that she is fierce and dramatic and driven, but she is an awful friend, her obsession with Alyee Maq (yes full names are used throughout) gets annoying, and I worry that some of the humor will be missed for the younger target audience and be taken as Muslim or Arab norms.  The presentation of a disability in a well illustrated graphic novel is empowering, an amazing Arab dad is nice to see, a divorced family co-parenting is important, but the foundation for much of the story is Bay Ann’s crush on Alyee Maq, he does kiss her on the cheek for social media likes, the book starts with Halloween Idol, features dancing throughout, and concludes with a Nondenominational Holiday Spectacular.  Bay Ann’s mom is not very kind or involved, and Alyee Maq’s mom, the only hijabi in the book, also is rather rough.  This is a book where I acknowledge my own overthinking, as both an adult reader and reviewer.  If you are ok with the (random) Islamic rep, kids will benefit from seeing Bay Ann as a fully capable person who happens to have a disability.  I’d suggest seeing if your local library has the book and looking through it first to see if you are comfortable passing it on to your kids.

SYNOPSIS:

Bay Ann is a tap dancer and with Halloween Idol coming up, she plans to win.  Her best friend Michelle is going to do her make-up as a zombie bride, and be her zombie bridesmaid with Davey Matt, the third in their trio, being the dead ring-bearer dog.  They can’t be her backup dancers because she is a one woman show, but she needs them to cheer her on.  When she wins, she has the spotlight stolen from her by Alyee Maq kissing her claiming he is making “a sick girls dream come true.” The clip goes viral, as Alyee Maq is a bit of a celebrity and the competition is on.  Whether it is science fair, social media posts, or the class debate, Bay Ann is determined to knock Alyee Maq down, claim the online spotlight, and  prove her talent is more than her disability.  With each attempt failing, her resolve grows stronger and her tunnel vision pushes those closest to her away, as she joins Alyee Maq with the hopes that if she can’t beat him, she will join him and achieve the fame she seeks.

WHY I LIKE IT:

I know the book is rather intentionally ridiculous, but I wanted to cheer for Bay Ann, and I never really liked her.  I don’t like how she treats Davey Matt, or even Michelle.  If she was better to them at the beginning, I think it would have shown how disconnected her mom Malak is as well as the school administrators, and made it more funny, but it truly just makes her seem like she is awful to everyone, and thus you don’t really find yourself invested in her stardom, her friendships, or her defining her own narrative.

I wish their was some Arab rep, not just a few Arabic words tossed in here and there.  I also wish there was more Islamic centering, or honestly even less. The swearing on the Quran really bothered me, Friday prayer is mentioned in passing, but there is no impact on the characters or the story, so it seemed misplaced.

The pacing of the story is rushed, and at times a bit chaotic.  I think it is intentional, but it makes it hard to connect to the characters or to grasp their motivations.  I don’t know that I truly ever understood why Bay Ann wants the spotlight, or why Alyee Maq is famous, or why Davey Matt hangs around Michelle and Bay Ann when they belittle him. It doesn’t need to be thoroughly explained, but when you finish the book, and feel exhausted, but can’t even articulate what the book was really about other than a girl that wants to be famous for her talent not her shaking, and won’t let anything or anyone get in her way, it seems like some opportunities were missed.

FLAGS:

Close male and female friendships with touching, an unwanted kiss, lying, manipulation.  Swearing on a Quran, disrespect. Using people.

TOOLS FOR LEADING THE DISCUSSION:

I don’t know that I would seek this book out to own, but in an Islamic school library if it found its way in, I would probably not object to it being shelved.