Aisha Saeed. Penguin/Paulsen, $17.99 (304p) ISBN 978-0-399-17170-3
Raised in a conservative Pakistani immigrant family, 17-year-old Naila has been an obedient daughter for most of her life. However, her American education has exposed her to her classmates’ comparative freedom and allowed her to spend time—and fall...
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Aisha Saeed. Penguin/Paulsen, $17.99 (240p) ISBN 978-0-399-54468-2
Saeed (Written in the Stars) infuses this true-to-life story of unjust power dynamics in a poor Pakistani village with a palpable sense of dread regarding the fate of the inquisitive, industrious, poetry-loving titular character. Twelve-year-old...
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Aisha Saeed. Kokila, $18.99 (304p) ISBN 978-0-593-32646-6
Two teens navigate grief and first love in this romantic fantasy by Saeed (Omar Rising), set in a magical world. Moonlight Bay local Yas and Raf—who has a leaf-shaped birthmark and is part of the Golub people—have been friends since Raf and his...
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Aisha Saeed, Huda Al-Marashi, Jamilah Thompkins Bigelow, and S.K. Ali. Amulet, $18.99 (272p) ISBN 978-1-4197-6175-1
In this multi-POV collaboration, four kids leaving the Muslims of North America conference are stranded with their families at Zora Neale Hurston Airport after a thunderstorm grounds their flights. When 12-year-old aspiring lyricist Feek Stiles,...
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Aisha Saeed, illus. by Anoosha Syed. Salaam Reads, $17.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-5344-1810-3
Saeed, a founder of We Need Diverse Books, offers a relatable story about trying new foods and introducing friends to family traditions. Bilal loves daal and couldn’t be happier to share it with his two friends, Elias and Morgan. The kids—who, in...
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Aisha Saeed, read by Priya Ayyar. Books on Tape, unabridged, 4 CDs, 4.5 hrs., $38 ISBN 978-0-525-63210-8
Ayyar gives an uneven performance of Saeed’s middle grade novel about the underworld of indentured servitude in contemporary Pakistan. When 12-year-old Amal publicly defies the scion of the powerful Khan family, the Khans call in her father’s debt...
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Aisha Saeed, illus. by LeUyen Pham. Salaam Reads, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-5344-6296-0
When Rumi moves across the country, his new teacher’s request that the class make him “feel at home” goes unheeded. During recess, most of the students, shown as racially diverse, ignore Rumi, who’s portrayed with brown skin and black hair. White-pre
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Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, $19.99 (448p) ISBN 978-0-06-293704-9
Once childhood friends, deeply shy Jamie Goldberg, who is Jewish and white, and stability-loving Maya Rehman, who is Pakistani-American and Muslim, reconnect when pressured into working on the campaign of a progressive Senate hopeful. At 17, both...
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Edited by Amy Reed. Simon Pulse, $18.99 (320p) ISBN 978-1-5344-0899-9
Twenty-one female YA authors and selected unpublished writers reflect on social justice, feminism, and coming-of-age in the U.S. Brandy Colbert discusses the lessons she has learned about the erasure of black individuals, Reed details experiences...
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Aisha Saeed, illus. by Neha Rawat. Kokila, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-5936-1895-0
A family’s way of reflecting on the year encourages Zuni, youngest of three, to make memories in this sunny tale. When Mama arrives home with a big glass jar, she explains that it will hold items associated with special moments. As Zuni’s family...
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