#Culture

[Podcast] Books, Boys, & Kareem Between | Shifa Saltagi Safadi

Published

July 9, 2024

Why aren’t there many Muslim books for boys? And why do stories matter for Muslim kids, anyway? Shifa Saltagi Safadi, author of multiple Muslim childrens’ books, shares her journey in writing “Kareem Between,” a middle-grade novel about a Muslim Syrian American struggling with faith, fitting in, and the fear of failure.

Zainab bint Younus and Shifa speak in more detail about the necessity of developing quality Muslim fiction, the dearth of books written for boys, and the featuring Islam as a core component of such books. And most importantly: how Muslim writers to spend time developing their craft before seeking publication.

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Synopsis for Kareem Between:

Seventh grade begins, and Kareem’s already fumbled it.

His best friend moved away, he messed up his tryout for the football team, and because of his heritage, he was voluntold to show the new kid—a Syrian refugee with a thick and embarrassing accent—around school. Just when Kareem thinks his middle school life has imploded, the hotshot QB promises to get Kareem another tryout for the squad. There’s a catch: to secure that chance, Kareem must do something he knows is wrong.

Then, like a surprise blitz, Kareem’s mom returns to Syria to help her family but can’t make it back home. If Kareem could throw a penalty flag on the fouls of his school and home life, it would be for unnecessary roughness. Kareem is stuck between. Between countries. Between friends, between football, between parents—and between right and wrong. It’s up to him to step up, find his confidence, and navigate the beauty and hope found somewhere in the middle.

Related:

Podcast: Refugee Representation In Muslim Literature

Podcast: A Glimpse Into Muslim Bookstagram

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Alhamdulillah, we're at over 850 supporters. Help us get to 900 supporters this month. All it takes is a small gift from a reader like you to keep us going, for just $2 / month.

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Zainab bint Younus

Zainab bint Younus (AnonyMouse) is a Canadian Muslim woman who writes on Muslim women's issues, gender related injustice in the Muslim community, and Muslim women in Islamic history. She holds a diploma in Islamic Studies from Arees University, a diploma in History of Female Scholarship from Cambridge Islamic College, and has spent the last fifteen years involved in grassroots da'wah. She was also an original founder of MuslimMatters.org.