How can I review a book that I just want to squeeze and hug? It’ll be tough to separate my feelings from a legitimate review– I’ll try– but you’re going to get the squealing schoolgirl with the professional librarian on this one.
Once Upon an Eid edited by S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed with an additional thirteen contributors is a short story collection centered around the Eid celebration and going in to Ramadan, I can’t think of a better day to talk about it than today though the book doesn’t officially release until May 5th. I was able to get my hands on an early copy but look forward to purchasing my own copy (and dozens for my library) because there will be finalized artwork including G. Willow Wilson’s short story that is formatted as a comic.
I admit, I was also swept up in celebratory joy because I read it in between Christmas and New Year, so the excitement was doubled. From start to finish, the collection has an uplifting and fresh feel. It does grapple with socioeconomic disparities, illness, rigid traditions juxtaposed by newness while always providing positive vibes that ring forth on Eid. It embodies Rudine Sims Bishop’s much-quoted windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors access that books provide.
Short story collections usually emit a glow from the get-go. There are many that even when one story may be weak, the entire collection carries to the finish line and doesn’t muddy the overall goal. There are some that are weak from start to finish. And then there are the gems where ever single story brings it’s own beautiful flower that put together becomes a most elegant bouquet: Once Upon an Eid is this kind of collection– an elegant bouquet. (How’s that for a gushy metaphor of admiration?)
The Muslim authors blend Muslim culture and religion. They share Eid fashion. Food. Relationships. The stories are told in comics, prose, and story. And this is its strength fortified by great storytelling and a rich knowledge to impart to others.
I can’t think of many books that I’ve actually re-read, but when I get the published copies I will re-read this one and place one on my personal bookshelf at home. I regret that when Aisha Saeed visited our high school this past November, that this hadn’t already come out to get a signed copy. So now, the new goal would be to see these two editors together, Ali and Saeed, to get them to sign the copy.
To close, Ramadan Mubarak!
And pre-order your copy of Once Upon an Eid, it’s the most epic book to accompany the Eid celebration to close the spiritual period of Ramadan.
Fast forward to 2020 and my digital reading of The Dark Matter of Mona Starr which I had on my TBR on Goodreads since it was announced she’d be releasing a new graphic novel. Then boom. I sat down and in one sitting didn’t move an inch while I poured over the illustrations and words. I knew I’d be writing about it. My initial reviews always go up on Goodreads which are usually fresh and raw after reading (and as soon as I can string a somewhat coherent sentence together after being awestruck) and in that review I said that I needed Gulledge to do a series focused on female character struggles that can be used as guides just as both of these are.
Moving on to an informative picture book, this one details the life of Ruth Wakefield, inventor of the chocolate chip cookie. Ford provides the three versions of how people think the cookie was created and has fun providing you with a well-rounded tale of her passion for food and how her toll house became part of the “Nestle’s Toll House Cookie” recipe stamped on each chocolate chip bag you buy.
Faruqi and Shovan are publishing A Place At the Table next month and I couldn’t be happier that this book exists. When I read it, I felt a warmth for the characters and the food that filled me up with love. Sara is Pakistani American and Elizabeth is Jewish and they both end up in the Southeast Asian cooking class run by Sara’s mother after Sara moves to the school. They befriend one another and find that their connections run a bit deeper as both of their mothers are not naturalized American citizens. But as the title implies, the girls work through typical middle grade angst by finding a place for each other at the table.
And last is an adult title that was recommended to me by a friend. While the book is over ten years old, it will resonate with those who can appreciate all the ways that food affects our lives be it romance or in mourning, friendship or solitude. It’s a series of vignettes that are all centered around Lillian’s cooking school “The School of Essential Ingredients” that she runs on Monday nights. It follows the attendees in various parts of their lives and how they all came to be together in the class. The languid storytelling is part of the appeal, like savoring a meal, and enriches the understanding. I also found myself pausing and re-reading lines that hit me to my core as a cook, baker, lover of food. As said by two participants in the class: “Here’s to kitchens. And here’s to what comes out of them.”
And last, another powerhouse name (in this case two!) attached to a powerhouse book. This one is Sulwe written and inspired by Lupita Nyong’o and illustrated by Vashti Harrison. If I could live inside the illustrations and surround myself with the colors of this book, I would which is ultimately what the story discusses: color. Sulwe feels estranged from others because of the darkness of her skin which is the darkest of her entire family and while she hears that her skin is beautiful, she doesn’t feel like it. She hears taunts and connects words with their connotations that are all too often negative. It isn’t until a magical evening that she’s told the story of the day and the night where she sees the importance of everyone’s differences and how they’re dependent on one another like the sisters of daytime and nighttime.
Maybe it’s because I’m a woman or maybe it’s because I’m a librarian, but either way, I want to take a moment to celebrate books about periods. They’ve been kind of having a moment. And I knew I wanted to share a post about periods two days ago when I finished Lily Williams and Karen Schneeman’s graphic novel published by First Second this past January called Go With the Flow. It’s a celebration of menstruation and friendship alongside actively advocating for rights.
But let’s also give it up for the most memorable scene where Sasha’s blood-stained pants are showing as the girls usher her to the bathroom and why the book works so well in its graphic novel format. Most can empathize or sympathize with her situation and it’s the kind of thing that is discussed in other books discussing periods: the truthful portrayal.
Fat Tuesday is also Paczki Day. Paczkis are Polish doughnuts usually with jelly filling and rolled in either powdered sugar or granulated sugar. They’re made on Fat Tuesday in preparation for the Lenten season’s austerity. This past Monday, I homemade them and was excited to share them with my family, colleagues, and neighbors who all know my love for baking.
And it’s the likes of illustrator Zeke Peña combined with the words of Isabel Quintero that merge Iturbide’s photography with an illustrated style that brings it to life two-fold. The most memorable panel, the one in which Peña re-works the iconic woman with the iguanas side by side with the photograph courtesy of Getty Images, is striking. And there are other panels that captivate the reader in their presentation and solidifies Peña’s skill both individually and collaboratively working with Quintero’s storytelling. Plus, the font itself worked seamlessly for my eyeballs to move around the pages and panels. Even Peña recognizes the beauty of illustrations by thanking readers “you and your eyeballs for reading this book”. You’re welcome, Peña. Thank you for illustrating it. And it got me thinking about my own life at thirty-something– how would Peña draw mine? What would Quintero write about me? Perhaps the best kind of self-reflective writing prompts could come from this book.
What works well for the series is the chronological organization of biographical information that is equal parts intrigue and straight facts. There’s a humanity in Kanefield’s delivery that does not dilute the truth, yet weaves a story of a person hellbent on creating an America that they had envisioned as they rose to notoriety.fame. With a mix of photographs and eye-catching covers, they’re as star-spangled as the flag.
Readers Be Advised 