Book review: Nanni's Hijab by Khadijah AbdulHaqq
I am really excited to be able to share another great book about a Muslim Girl!
Nanni’s Hijab is the story of Nanni, a little girl who loves wearing her hijab. She wears a different hijab every day. Her classmates enjoy seeing all the colors and designs of Nanni’s hijabs, except Leslie. Leslie doesn’t like Nanni or her hijabs. She tries to bully Nanni for wearing her hijabs to school. Leslie humiliates Nanni in the schoolyard in front of all their classmates by yanking Nanni's hijab off of her head. Nanni, not unlike any other Muslim girl, gets very upset with Leslie’s bullying. In her heart, she wants to fight Leslie, but she knows there has to be a better way. Instead of fighting, she goes home to think about the best way to handle Leslie's bullying. Read about how she handles the situation.
Like most of you around my age,(*Cough* 30's *Cough*) I didn't get to read books about little Muslim girls, their Islamic identity, or even stories of Muslims that wasn't about being an immigrant.
So when I get a chance to read these books with my kids, its like I get to relive vicariously through them as they experience it.
The Author Khadijah AbdulHaqq is a married, mother of five who loves reading, writing, and painting. She has written four books, although Naani’s Hijab is the first to be published. Khadijah occasionally acts as a homeschooling consultant. She has homeschooled all five of her children for the past twenty years. She is also a co-organizer and facilitator of the GEM program for teenage girls. Khadijah is currently pursuing her own Bachelor degree, as well as homeschooling her youngest children. She is originally from Philadelphia, PA, but presently living in Memphis, TN with her husband.
For this Book Review both my girls read this book, the younger one really enjoyed it especially because of the pretty pink hijabs because that's her favorite color. My older daughter liked the story and understood the lesson behind it, but she is 9 and felt that it was better for younger kids. This book is great for 4-8 in her opinion.
I asked my oldest some questions and the younger one chimed in as well.
Question & Answers:
Mama: What is the book about?
Aisha: A girl named Nanni wears a hijab to school, and a girl in her class named Leslie bullies her about it.
Mama: Do you think other people will like it?
Aisha: Yes, mostly young Muslims.
Mama: Did you think it was funny or sad?
Aisha: Some parts are sad but it had a bittersweet ending because even though Nanni was still angry she took the high road.
Mama: Did you learn something from the book?
Aisha: Yes, I learned that sometimes you get angry when people treat you bad but that doesn't mean you should treat them bad as well.
Mama: Would you read it again?
Aisha: Yes!
Mama: What was your favorite part?
Aisha: My favorite part is the ending.
Mama: How did you like the illustrations?
Aisha: I liked the pictures, especially because Nanni looks like me.
At the end, I asked them if they like reading books like this and they both said YES! and they both said that its cool to read books with Muslim Characters because they're just like them.
Haniyah gave this book 5 Stars she loved reading it. and Aisha gave it 4 Stars and also loved reading it but she felt it was better suited for younger kids.
“O God Please help me deal with Leslie in the best way"
Overall as a mom, I loved this book and being able to share the experience with my girls. As much as we would like to shelter our kids from Islamaphobia or garden variety bullying it's not possible, but by teaching them that you should speak to an adult and make dua this book illustrated that you are allowed to feel sad, angry and confused but that your Muslim character should shine brightly.
This is a great book to give to the Muslim kids in your life, especially with Ramadan and Eid coming up in a few months.
You can purchase the book here through the publisher and use the Coupon Code: Nanni's 10%
https://www.djarabikitabs.com/bookstore/nannis-hijab
or through Amazon http://a.co/gMipCyk