Kareem Between Will Appeal to All Tweens
I met Shifa Saltagi Safadi at a Penguin Random House author event during NCTE 2024 in Boston, a few days after she had won the National Book Award for her novel in verse, Kareem Between. Shifa was warm, friendly and exuded merely the gentlest joy and pride at her accomplishment. No swagger. No snobbery. She embodied, to quote her own words, “the sweetness of our community.” If I hadn’t already found Kareem adorable for his own sake before I met her, I would surely have done so for her sake after she and I met in person.
I could sum up this entire review by saying I’m sure that every tween who meets Kareem will enjoy his company. Within a few pages, they’ll become his friends. And their empathy will be engaged as they accompany him on his emotional journey.
Kareem is a 7th grader, a middle child with an older sister and a younger brother, and he’s a Syrian American. When the novel opens, he’s worried about standard middle grade issues, like any other kid: his best friend has moved away and he wants to make the football team. He doesn’t do well at tryouts, however; but another kid promises to give him another chance to make the team - provided Kareem does something that isn’t right.
Then, Kareem’s beloved mother returns to Syria to help her family. When she’s abroad, the 45th president of the United States signs an executive order that prevents her safe return. Kareem’s bond with Fadi, another Syrian American kid deepens. But Kareem and his family are afraid that his mother might never be able to join them again.
In a moving Author’s Note, readers will learn about how Executive Order 13769 tore families apart and why it was nicknamed the Muslim ban. And no reader will put this book down without being moved both by the hate - and the love - that humans are capable of showing toward one another.
One of the most touching scenes is when Kareem’s father and a Jewish man stand shoulder to shoulder at the airport - a fact inspired by a true story. But I will have to stop now, before I give away too much of the plot.
I’ll just say that this book belongs on the shelf of every school library.
As for Shifa, I hope you get to meet her in person someday. Until then, you can find her on IG: @muslimmommyblog and read her reviews of Muslim books on - you guessed it - the Muslim Mommy Blog.
Padma Venkatraman is the author of Diverse Verse. Her latest novel, Safe Harbor, was described as a “must-read” and “a perfect fit” for middle graders in a starred review by School Library Journal. Her previous novels (The Bridge Home, Born Behind Bars, Island’s End, A Time to Dance and Climbing the Stairs) have sold over 1/4 million copies, received over 20 starred reviews, and garnered numerous awards and honors (winner of the WNDB Walter Dean Myers award and many more). Order Padma’s latest novel, Safe Harbor, at: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/647197/safe-harbor-by-padma-venkatraman/
