Review: The Garden of My Imaan

Title: Garden of My Imaan
Author: Farhana Zia
Publisher: Peachtree
Pages: 230
Review Copy: Provided by Publisher
Release Date: April 1, 2013

Summary: Aliya already struggles with trying to fit in, feeling confident enough to talk to the cute boy or stand up to mean kids. The fact that she's Muslim is just another thing to deal with. 

When Marwa, a Moroccan girl who shares her faith if not her culture, comes to Aliya's school, Aliya wonders even more about who she is, what she believes, and where she fits in. Should she fast for Ramadan? Should she wear the hijab? She's old enough for both, but does she really want to call attention to herself? -- Cover image & summary via Goodreads

My Thoughts: There were many things I enjoyed about this book. First, the mix of formats kept things interesting. Zia provided a brief traditional story at the beginning followed by narrative and then there were also letters sprinkled throughout the text. Following her great-grandmother's advice, Aliya chose to complete her Sunday School assignment through letters to Allah. Second, I loved seeing the intergenerational interactions of Aliya's family. I especially appreciated that Aliya went to her mother, father, grandmother and great-grandmother expecting advice. It showed a beautiful respect and trust. As a person who hasn't experienced living with extended family (at least not for long periods of time), seeing how it might work was definitely interesting. Zia showed that Aliya liked some things about that situation, but that sometimes it was annoying - like when her great-grandmother required her to practice Urdu three times a week in addition to her piles of homework. Third, learning more about Islam and the wide variety of ways it is practiced was fascinating. I read and enjoyed the non-fiction book Growing Up Muslim: Understanding the Beliefs and Practices of Islam earlier this year, but seeing those beliefs and practices through a fictional text made it even easier to see how it could look.

The glossary at the back was very helpful. There were two sections: one for the Arabic and one for the Urdu. There I found that imaan means belief. Aliya is struggling with her own beliefs. She doesn't know exactly what she believes and even if she does, she is not certain how to act on those beliefs. Aliya worries a lot about how other people see her. Regardless of culture, most middle grade students can relate to that concern. One of the reasons she worries is related to the bullying she sees. She doesn't want to stand out and give anyone another reason to pick on her. Marwa, the new girl, wears the hijab seemingly without concern. This gives Aliya a lot to think about. She wonders if other people are just braver.

Also, Aliya's mother explains what makes Aliya who she is -  "A tasty concoction of American and Muslim and Indian and sugar and spice and everything that is very nice." This book celebrates the idea that we are more than our race, we are more than our languages and religions. Many things shape us and contribute to who we become. We see this through Aliya's friends with their differing backgrounds too. 

Beliefs are obviously a central focus in this book, but bullying and getting along with others also plays a huge role. I loved that Aliya's father provides a "recipe for getting along." He says it's "A twist of good, a sprinkle of kind, and a dash of nice." 

I would highly recommend this as a class read aloud. I think many students who enjoyed Wonder would also enjoy The Garden of My Imaan. It is a wonderful contemporary middle grade story about a girl trying to find her voice, and she will likely win your heart as you experience her story.

Extras:
Q & A with Farhana Zia via The Streetlight Reader
Interview via PaperTigers Blog
A Peek at the Creative Space of Farhana Zia via Jennifer Bertman after the picture book release: Hot, Hot, Roti for Dada-ji (another fantastic book)

It's Monday! What are you reading?

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journeys. Jen Vincent over at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee Moye from Unleashing Readers decided to put a children's and YA spin on it and they invite anyone with an interest to join in. You can participate by creating your post then visit one of their sites to add your site. Finally, visit at least three participant blogs and comment to spread the love.

The Past Week: 

Reviewed: The Raven Boys and Dream Thieves

Young Adult

Whew! Sold was a tough book to read. Child sex trafficking is not the easiest topic to deal with, but McCormick did a stellar job. Strangely enough, The Fire Horse Girl touched on trafficking too. Sold felt like it should be happening way in the past and sometimes I would forget that it was more recent. They would refer to the television and I would realize that this sort of thing is still happening. It's overwhelming to think about it. To think that there are other girls like Lakshmi out there right now crushes my heart.

The Fire Horse Girl had more action than I had anticipated, but that was a good thing. I enjoyed Jade Moon's ability to remain true to herself in spite of the expectations of everyone around her. I loved that she fought for herself and others.

Peanut was a title that came up several times during last month's #bookbootcamp so when I saw it available at the library I grabbed it. I have to say I cringed through a good chunk of it because the main character is pretending to have a peanut allergy to get attention and be "special" at her new school. Ack! I just kept waiting for it to all fall apart. It kept me interested, but frustrated too.

Picture Book

I loved  that I found this picture book folktale, Tougi the Toad Finds His Smile, at the Hmong ABC store in St. Paul. I have bought many books there, but this one was new. It's a fun folktale about a toad who wants to be the most powerful being around. The illustrations are fantastic. I am always excited to find more literature with Hmong culture. In the story there are a few people and they are wearing traditional clothing too. 

Middle Grade Non-fiction

I knew of many of the people that are profiled in Peace Warriors, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Desmond Tutu, and Dalai Lama. What I appreciate though is that there are two women included that I had not really known about before. I had heard the name Dorothy Day when I volunteered at a shelter, but did not know why a homeless shelter would have that name. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was a name that I had never heard at all. This is quite an inspirational book and really shows how one person really can make a huge difference in the world.

Middle Grade Fiction

I will write a more thorough review later, but I really enjoyed The Garden of My Imaan. Very quickly I realized that there was a glossary and I found out that imaan means belief.  I began reading and just didn't stop. Earlier this year I read Growing Up Muslim: Understanding the Beliefs and Practices of Islam, and this book helped remind me of the things I learned then. It would likely be helpful if a non-Muslim is reading this book to have the non-fiction book nearby as a resource if there are questions.

The Coming Week:

Since my digital copy will expire next week, I think I will finally get to The Boy on the Porch. I knew that I still had time, so I was always reading something else first. It is coming down to the wire. I was also supposed to read Spy School for #bookbootcamp since we are doing mysteries, but I don't think I will get it finished by tomorrow evening since I haven't even started. Ack! But wait, I just looked and it is available at the library that is in walking distance. Yay!

Have a wonderful week filled with reading! What are you reading?