Saffron Ice Cream

Rashin is excited about her first visit to the beach in her family’s new home. On the way there, she remembers what beach trips were like in Iran, the beautiful Caspian Sea, the Persian music, and most of all, the saffron ice cream she shared with her best friend, Azadeh. But there are wonderful things in this new place as well a subway train, exciting music and maybe even a new friend!

Driving By Starlight

Sixteen-year-olds Leena and Mishie are best friends. They delight in small rebellions against the Saudi cultural police―secret Western clothing, forbidden music, flirtations. But Leena wants college, independence―she wants a different life. Though her story is specific to her world (a world where it’s illegal for women to drive, where a ten-year-old boy is the natural choice as guardian of a fatherless woman), ultimately it’s a story about friendship, family, and freedom that transcends cultural differences.

Ramadan

In the ninth month of the year, when the first crescent moon rises in the sky, it’s time to celebrate Ramadan! In this lovely board book with illustrations from Rashin Kheiriyeh, readers learn that Ramadan is a time to reflect on ourselves, to be thankful, and a time to help others.

Faith And Fury

Temple Mount is a site where worlds meet, conflict arises, and history changes. Standing in the center of Jerusalem, it is a holy landmark for Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike, and has been the locus of many of the most important religious, social, and political upheavals of the last thousand years. Rumored to be the location of the Garden of Eden, Temple Mount dominates Jerusalem’s Old City and contains the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall, both of which attract millions of visitors and religious pilgrims each year. Veteran author Ilene Cooper explores the turbulent history of Jerusalem’s famous Temple Mount in this timely, illustrated nonfiction offering.

Crescent Moons and Pointed Minarets: A Muslim Book of Shapes

From a crescent moon to a square garden to an octagonal fountain, this breathtaking picture book celebrates the shapes—and traditions—of the Muslim world. Sure to inspire questions and observations about world religions and cultures, Crescent Moons and Pointed Minarets is equally at home in a classroom reading circle and on a parent’s lap being read to a child.

Featured in WOW Review Volume XI, Issue 1.

Escape From Syria

A fictionalized account of a family fleeing war-torn Syria after their home in Aleppo is destroyed. They endure wretched refugee camps, ocean crossings, swindlers – all to find safety in the West.

Escape From Aleppo

After Nadia is separated from her family while fleeing the civil war, she spends the next four days with a mysterious old man who helps her navigate the checkpoints and snipers of the rebel, ISIS, and Syrian armies that are littering Aleppo on her way to meeting her father at the Turkish border.

Featured in WOW Review Volume X, Issue 3.

Escape from Aleppo is a WOW Recommends: Book of the Month for May 2018.