MG – Omar Rising

Saeed, Aisha. Omar Rising. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2022. 978-0-593-10858-1. 224 p. $17.99. Grades 5-8.

This book follows Omar, childhood friend of Amal from Aisha Saeed’s Amal Unbound, in a new story about a poor student going away to an expensive boarding school. Amal and the rest of Omar’s community is overjoyed that his hard work has given him the opportunity to receive such an exclusive education, but Omar quickly realizes that many inequities exist for “scholarship” students. Even though Omar is a thoughtful, hardworking student who does everything he is asked to do at his new school, he and the other scholarship students can’t seem to get ahead in a system that is stacked against them. Eventually, the entire student body must come together to support Omar in a system that was never designed to allow people to move beyond their socioeconomic status. With the support of his home family, his school friends, and even the unexpected support of some of his teachers, Omar eventually discovers who he really is and all the things he can do with his opportunities in life. 

THOUGHTS: Omar is easy to root for, and his growth and hard work throughout the book are very inspiring. The way his friends support him at the end of the story was heartwarming, and the power of community is on full display in this book. Glimpses into the life of servants and people who work hard but cannot advance in society are sure to make students think about parallels they see to similar situations in their own life. 

Realistic Fiction          Erin Faulkner, Cumberland Valley SD

Omar, the son of a servant in a Pakistani village, is excited to start at the prestigious Ghalib Academy for Boys. The boarding school will provide him with so many educational opportunities, and he cannot wait to be a part of the soccer team and the astronomy club. However, when he arrives, he discovers that, as a scholarship student, he’s not allowed to join any clubs or activities during his first year at school. Instead, he has to work in the kitchens to earn his keep and get even higher grades than the other students. If he doesn’t succeed, he will be sent home. Frustrated, Omar and the other scholarship students set out to fight the injustice and inequity of the system and learn many life lessons along the way.

THOUGHTS: Omar Rising is a companion to Amal Unbound, but you can read each as a stand alone novel. Readers will be rooting for Omar as they feel his frustration toward the unfairness of his status as a scholarship student at Ghalib Academy. Written by a Pakistani author, this book also brings awareness to the inequities that exist for students around the world, and it’s a must have for any middle grade collection. 

Realistic Fiction          Emily Hoffman, Conestoga Valley SD

Elem./MG – Amina’s Song

Khan, Hena. Amina’s Song. Saleem Reads, 2021. 978-1-534-45988-5. 275 p. $17.99. Grades 4-6.

Amina is spending some of her summer in Pakistan with a family that she doesn’t see often, and she loves it! The market, the food, the sights, as well as spending time with her extended family, it’s hard to pick a favorite thing. With the end of the summer pending, Amina is headed back home and ready to share her favorite parts of Pakistan with her friends and classmates. However, they only seem to hear the bad parts of Pakistan, which is extremely frustrating and disheartening to Amina. She wonders if she can change their minds when she gets just that opportunity! Her history teacher assigns a project which just might help Amina change her classmates’ mind about her homeland, as well as show them the Pakistan Amina knows.

THOUGHTS: Amina’s Song is an amazing sequel which showcases the bond that Amina’s family has between Pakistan and the United States wonderfully. I feel many readers will be able to relate to Amina’s thoughts and feelings, especially when Amina is struggling to share her favorite parts of Pakistan with her classmates and friends. Highly recommend this book for any elementary or middle school collection.

Realistic Fiction          Mary Hyson, Lehigh Valley Regional Charter Academy

MG – A Thousand Questions

Faruqi, Saadia. A Thousand Questions. HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2020. 978-0-062-94320-0. 225 p. $16.99. Grades 6-8. 

In this East meets West friendship story, A Thousand Questions shows the disparity in lifestyles between the United States and Pakistan told alternately by the two main characters. Eleven-year-old Mimi Scotts and her mother travel from Houston, Texas, for summer vacation to visit her wealthy grandparents, Begum Sahib and Sahiba Ji, in Karachi for the first time. She is awed by the wealth and luxury of her grandparents’ home compared with her tiny apartment and stretched budget back in the United States. While Mimi’s mother reconnects with her school chums, Mimi forms a friendship with the servant girl, Sakina Ejaz. Too poor to go to school, Sakina assists her diabetic father cooking in the Ji’s kitchen. The two girls become fast friends. With the backdrop of the campaign season for new elections, Sakina shows Mimi the sites of Karachi, and Mimi agrees to tutor to Sakina for her English examination so that she can win a school scholarship. Mimi’s narration includes secret letters she writes to Tom Scotts, the father she has never met. When Mimi discovers her freelance journalist father is living in Karachi, she is determined to meet him and Sakina is a willing accomplice. Author Saadia Faruqi captures the richness of the Asian city from the delicious dishes and its atmosphere to the inequity of the caste system as well as the authenticity of the fully-drawn main characters: Sakina, mature beyond her years, cognizant of her integral role in providing for the welfare of her family; Mimi, an ordinary American girl of modest means, getting to know her grandparents and also her own mother in her childhood home and longing to connect with father.

THOUGHTS: This book reminds the reader of When Heaven Fell  by Carolyn Marsden, a story that compares the life of  a struggling Vietnamese family with the life of an adult Vietnamese-American adoptee who visits her Vietnamese birth mother. There’s a part where Sakini asks Mimi if there are poor people in America and Mimi answers, “No,” at first until she remembers a homeless man and the kids at school who qualify for free lunch. Discussion of social justice issues, equity in education, and divorce can ensue.

Realistic Fiction          Bernadette Cooke, School District of Philadelphia

When Mimi and her mother arrive in Karachi, Pakistan for the summer, Mimi immediately misses air conditioning, soccer, and chicken nuggets, all staples of her American upbringing. Mimi is surprised to find that her grandparents live in luxury, employing servants and wearing fancy clothes, while Mimi and her mother can barely afford rent in their tiny Houston apartment. Mimi realizes there is so much she doesn’t know about her mother, her grandparents, and her father who left years ago without explanation. After learning that her father’s job brought him to Karachi, Mimi befriends a servant girl who agrees to help Mimi find him in exchange for English lessons. Sakina, a servant of Mimi’s grandparents, dreams of going to school like Mimi, but her servant status prohibits her from making her dreams a reality. After all, when would she find the time to go to school when she must keep her job to take care of her own family and ailing father? Going to school seems even more impossible when she takes a secret exam and fails the English portion, but when Sakina and Mimi strike up their deal, Sakina starts to hope for her future and a better life for her family. As their friendship blossoms, the inequities of the Pakistani class system are revealed, and the friends determine to make good in both of their worlds despite the challenges.

THOUGHTS: Instead of multiple perspectives from different time periods, this story highlights two contemporary perspectives in a country many readers will be unfamiliar with. Shining light on the class system that still exists today in Pakistan, readers may feel compelled to learn more about the living inequalities and hardships people face who live outside of the United States. This is a good #ownvoices addition to any library seeking to diversity their collection.

Realistic     Jaynie Korzi, South Middleton SD