(2) 4-6 Seventh grader Mahnoor Raheem is less than thrilled when her Pakistani grandmother, Dadi, comes to live with them in Texas. Not only does Maha have to give up her bedroom, but her father also expects her to "babysit" his mother while he and Maha's mom work long hours at the hospital. Although her home life is disrupted, Maha is excited about her media studies elective; she sees the class as a steppingstone to pursuing her dream of becoming a journalist. A class project -- making "a documentary on a topic that's newsworthy" -- gives Maha the opportunity to learn more about Dadi's life and an appreciation for what history can teach us about the present. By spending time with her grandmother prepping meals, participating in her first Ramadan fast, and playing board games, she learns a great deal about the 1947 Partition of British India into India and Pakistan. Faruqi introduces readers to the Partition, the largest mass migration in history, through relatable characters experiencing recognizable middle-school dynamics. The conversational style of the historical retelling offsets some of the heavier issues of rampant violence, refugee resettlement, and trauma. Readers are rewarded with a deeply immersive and moving story as Maha experiences a shift in understanding of her hyphenated identities and connects her family's history to other immigrant experiences.

Reviewer: Sadaf Siddique | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) 4-6 Issues of home and belonging form the cornerstones of Faruqi's (author of the Yasmin early chapter books) first solo middle-grade novel. Mimi and her mother (her father left the family when Mimi was very young) are on a "forced vacation" from Houston to Pakistan to visit Mimi's only-seen-on-Skype grandparents. There she meets Sakina, the family cook's daughter, who dreams of a future that hinges on passing an English test to secure admission to school. The girls' initial hesitation gives way to a tentative friendship through summer afternoons spent learning English and Urdu, tasting mangoes, dealing with errant centipedes, and exploring Karachi together. Mimi, already at odds with her mother, is privy to Mom's prickly relationship with her own parents, and the family drama is heightened as secrets about Mimi's father are revealed. Told through the girls' alternating points of view, the novel examines contemporary urban Pakistan in all its complexity. Faruqi threads issues of privilege, poverty, democracy, and the meaning of family throughout the book. She manages to convey the realities of Sakina's hardscrabble life and Mimi's sense of abandonment without being heavy-handed. The author's note and glossary give a sense of Faruqi's personal connection to the city and its characters.

Reviewer: Sadaf Siddique | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020