Our Neighborhood: Friday Fun by Marzieh Abbas illustrated by Anoosha Syed
At 26 pages and 55 words, this adorable board book conveys Jumu’ah sunnahs, joy, Islam, and community. The simple rhyming words and bright engaging illustrations are meant for babies to three year olds, but I have a house full of older kids and this book made them all smile. The book is part of a larger non fiction series, “Our Neighborhood,” that focuses on different communities, and the first of two that celebrate Islam. “Excited for Eid” will be released before the end of the year. The 7 x 7 size and thick pages can work in small groups in addition to bedtime. Whether your audience is Muslim kids learning about Jumu’ah, or non Muslims learning about what Muslims do on Fridays, the book will have a large appeal and be a joy to read over and over.
The book establishes it is Friday and then the characters get ready for Jumu’ah at the masjid. They shower and groom, and trim, and head to the mosque for a talk before the adhan signals the time to pray. After duas they give charity, hug their friends, and share a meal.
The little kids, male and female, pray together, but I took it to be realistic as often little kids are with one parent and are not segregated like the adults. The illustrations show some of the kids in hijabs, others not, some of the adults in duputta style head coverings, others in hijab, and some in niqab. “Allah” is written in Arabic above the mimbar, and the word “sadaqah” is on a box under donations and above mosque. All the other words are the English versions of the word, except Adhan is in the text and not defined as the call to prayer. There is no glossary. The book really is for Muslims, by Muslim, but as a mainstream published book, it also is an easy window to open for non Muslims to see us in our element on Jumu’ah, alhumdulillah.
