We Are Big Time by Hena Khan Illustrated by Safiya Zerrougui
With themes of being new in school, balancing sports and school, teamwork, focusing on the positive and pushing back on media stereotypes, this 240 page middle grade graphic novel inspired by a true story is a feel good story that can be enjoyed by all. The all hijab wearing Muslim high school girls’ basketball team is researched and noted in the backmatter, and while often Hena Khan books feel performative, the tone of this is not identity based. The characters are Muslim, they are not questioning their religion, and in fact push back on the media who try and make it about what they have to overcome by practicing their faith, rather than on their abilities on the court. That isn’t to say that the Islamic representation is strong. For characters in an Islamic school, a whole page is dedicated to being the new kid in each class, but only one “salaam” is offered. The team informs their non Muslim coach when they need to pray which is nice, but surprisingly with a Muslim author and Muslim illustrator when the protagonist prays at home with her family, the men and women erroneously stand together. The framing, the setup, the accomplishments are all Muslim centered, but the book is not particularly Islam centered. The take away of teamwork, hard work, and normalizing Muslim hijabi women in sports is well done, and I think an easy book for kids to identify with as they read the panels of Aliya dealing with stresses and changes, on and off the court. This book releases next month, and I encourage you to consider for yourself if you feel the author has done enough with her platform to speak about Palestine before supporting or not supporting the book.
SYNOPSIS:
The book starts with Aliya, her two brothers and parents stuck in a car headed from Tampa to Milwaukee. They are relocating to be closer to her grandparents, and the kids are not excited. The first day for the trio at Peace Academy stands out because the school is big. Aliya who has played rec basketball in the past, now decides to try out for the school team. Tryouts are a bust, only nine girls show, so they all make the team. With hopes of turning a failing program around, the school has hired a new coach, a non Muslim who used to play Division 1 ball. It seems Aliya might start to make friends with her teammates, but then she is named co-captain which ruffles some feathers, her grades start slipping, and the team still isn’t winning. When the media takes an interest in the team, the pressure mounts to represent themselves, their school, their faith, and show what they can do on the court.
WHY I LIKE IT:
I love that identity is not in question and that the characters articulate the worries they have about their representation in the media, not because of something they’ve said or even Islamophobia, but just based on the framing of the questions, and assumptions that abound.
I read a black and white arc, so at times I didn’t know who was the dad and who was the older brother, but even with that confusion, the beginning is a bit stilted. The dad doesn’t know if his daughter was any good at basketball, and the dialogue is so flat to set the stage, that I was glad it only lasted a few pages. I appreciated that the parents were stressing grades, but were not overly narrow minded, they were presented in a very level headed supportive way as to not fall into a common desi/immigrant stereotype.
I don’t know why the prayer scene is wrong, but the more I try and tell myself it was just a mistake, the more mad I get. This is why beta reading is so important, Muslim kids will notice, it will make the book feel just that much less authentic, and it so easily could/should have been fixed.
FLAGS:
None, a little bit of Islamophobia, but it is pretty clean
TOOLS FOR LEADING THE DISCUSSION:
The graphic novel format makes the book a pretty quick read, and most of the discussion points are handled in the text, so I don’t know that a book club would benefit. I do think having it on the shelf for kids to pick up and read, will keep the book bouncing from one reader to the next. I know my kids have all read it…that’s the beauty of graphic novels, just having it around means it gets picked up, read, and often finished, despite the readers age or even interest.
