Sam(ira)’s (Worst) Best Summer by Nina Hamza
The first 15% of this 336 page book were rough, the internalized Islamophobia/othering, the excessive discussion of Halloween and being toilet papered, but then I don’t know, something suddenly changed, and I was hooked. There really is no plot, the reader just spends the summer with Samira, the highs the lows, you see it all through her tween eyes, which worked great for me because I truly loved her voice. Her dry witty humor, the short choppy chapters, once the forced Islamic rep faded (I know, the irony is not lost on me), the book was hard to put down. It has Muslamic flags: music is a HUGE part of the book, there is lying, mention of beer, parties with boys, Halloween, dancing, bullying, racism, ageism, Islamophobia, stereotypes, but it also has a lot of heart, finding yourself and voice, amazing sibling support, community, a super grandma, a little brother who is on the spectrum and absolutely a star who holds his own. It is very idyllic even for middle grade, but I think if you are ok with the aforementioned flags and have a middle grader trying to find their place or has had some friend trouble, this book will resonate and be well loved.
SYNOPSIS:
Sam/Sammy/Samira is wrapping up a school year that did not go as planned even though she found she loved being a photographer for the yearbook. She had a huge falling out with her best friend Keira, and she cannot wait for a summer of never leaving her room. Her parents and older sister are heading to India, leaving her with her little brother Imran, and Umma, their Grandma who came from India to watch them. The end of school culminates with the yearbooks being delayed, her house being toilet papered, the talent show performance that she quit- being completely changed and incredibly racist, Keira spreading lies, and a new girl moving in to the neighborhood. It is a lot for Samira, and summer is just getting started. Umma knows the whole neighborhood before the week is out, and starts building a community that rallies around the three of them. Samira becomes a roadie for a band, Imran gets an old artist to teach him to paint, parties are planned, voices are found, friendships are established, and videos are made celebrating the success and obstacles of it all. Every time they call the rest of the family in India, even the reader realizes just how much they all have grown.
WHY I LIKE IT:
I just love Samira, she is relatable, funny, and you just cheer for her. I wish her lens though was Islamic. She doesn’t wear a swimsuit because she misread the dress code, but had no Islamic perspective hesitation of going to a swimming party with boys. She gets blamed for sneaking beer to a gathering and it says she doesn’t drink, but doesn’t stress, that it would be a huge, huge deal Islamically, not just because she is underage. Music and dancing aren’t even blips on the radar. Umma prays, Sammy finds it annoying that her prayers seem to take longer when Sammy is waiting for her. Once it mentions that Sammy was told to pray, but it never shows her praying. Islam seems very forced, just enough for the character to mention Islamophobia in other instances where the label creates stress for the family.
The character development of Imran and Umma, even though they don’t change at all, has depth and grounds the story. I read a digital copy that doesn’t have any backmatter, but I do hope that the autistic rep is accurate. Imran’s perspective and heart are so engaging and his and Samira’s relationship is very tender. There is no pity, or looking down, he legit is fully fleshed out and awesome. Umma is incredible too, her magic network of getting things done really is a super power. She connects with people, has a huge heart, and picks her battles. I wish I could take an internship from Umma.
I can’t figure out if the resolution to the “climax” is intentionally understated because Samira has moved on and grown, and having a big explosion doesn’t fit her character, or if it was just not written strong enough. That is why I put climax in quotations, because there really isn’t a lead up, or rising action, it is a progression, but it is like the rest of the smaller ups and downs, it is just a stress of the day-to-day living of the protagonist. The other thread of the “climax” being Alice’s grandma coming home from the hospital, really just seemed weak. She should have come to the party in her wheelchair, I really didn’t get why it centered the party for being for her, but then let her leave.
I like that Keira wasn’t given redeeming qualities, and her treatment of Samira was never justified. Often the bullies are shown to have hard lives, which is fine, but sometimes they are just mean. Samira really takes the high road in handling Keira and what she wants their interactions to look like in the future, which is much better messaging than most books about bullies contain, and I really appreciate that.
FLAGS:
Bullying, racism, stereotypes, lying, Islamophobia, agism, mocking, teasing, music, dancing, vandalism, mention of Halloween and beer.
TOOLS FOR LEADING THE DISCUSSION: It wouldn’t be possible to do this as a book club selection in an Islamic school because of the music element, but depending on the school, it might still be ok to shelve in classrooms and the library.
