Once Upon an Eid: Stories of Hope and Joy by 15 Muslim Voices -Edited by S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed and Illustrated by Sara Alfageeh

Summary from Goodreads:

Once Upon an Eid is a collection of short stories that showcases the most brilliant Muslim voices writing today, all about the most joyful holiday of the year: Eid!

Eid: The short, single-syllable word conjures up a variety of feelings and memories for Muslims. Maybe it’s waking up to the sound of frying samosas or the comfort of bean pie, maybe it’s the pleasure of putting on a new outfit for Eid prayers, or maybe it’s the gift-giving and holiday parties to come that day. Whatever it may be, for those who cherish this day of celebration, the emotional responses may be summed up in another short and sweet word: joy. The anthology will also include a poem, graphic-novel chapter, and spot illustrations.

The full list of Once Upon an Eid contributors include: G. Willow Wilson (Alif the Unseen, Ms. Marvel), Hena Khan (Amina's Voice, Under My Hijab), N. H. Senzai (Shooting Kabul, Escape from Aleppo), Hanna Alkaf (The Weight of Our Sky), Rukhsana Khan (Big Red Lollipop), Randa Abdel-Fattah (Does My Head Look Big in This?), Ashley Franklin (Not Quite Snow White), Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow (Mommy's Khimar), Candice Montgomery (Home and Away, By Any Means Necessary), Huda Al-Marashi (First Comes Marriage), Ayesha Mattu, Asmaa Hussein, and Sara Alfageeh.

Review:

This was such a joy to read! I began reading it on the last night of Chanukah, a holiday I feel like a lot of my friends know little to nothing about. (Not that Chanukah is even that important of a holiday in the scheme of things). But, despite the fact that one of my closest friends from high school, who I’m still in touch with, is Muslim, I can’t say that I know much about Eid. I feel like we are all so involved in what we do, and then what it seems like the masses do, it’s hard to find time to think about what everyone else does.

I don’t want to make this book sound like it’s an educational tool about Eid either because it’s not. It’s better. It’s stories about how different families celebrate. I loved getting these little windows into other families’ traditions. And it wasn’t just Muslims in our country celebrating Eid either. It was amazing to see families celebrating at carnivals, in mosques, at refugee camps on Greek islands, over shared donuts, and at the dinner table.

I connected with some of the stories more than others.  The story “Kareem Means “Generous”’ by Asmaa Hussein just melted my heart. It’s the story of a kid who learned to do the right thing with a gentle push/gift from his grandma. I also particularly loved “Not only an only” by Huda Al-Marashi. It’s the story of a girl who was used to being the only Muslim in her class learning to embrace a new girl. Her niceness pays off because she learns about a new place to go and celebrate Eid that is more welcoming. And she makes new friends. I found myself connecting to this girl because I have been her before. And that’s the best thing about books like this: we can learn about the different things we all celebrate, but also we learn about all the things we have in common. 

My only complaint about the book is that it felt like there were too many lessons/morals in it. After 5 stories in a row, about learning to be charitable, it felt a little much…However, I’ve gathered that being generous and giving is a part of this holiday. It might be like if I were to read a Christmas short story collection and was like “Enough with the Christmas Trees already.” So, I’m not sure it’s something I can actually criticize. But, it is something I noticed. All in all, I loved it. I give it a 9/10.

Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 8.5: Unlocked by Shannon Messenger

Summary from Goodreads:

Book 8.5 in the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling Keeper of the Lost Cities series delivers what fans of the series have been begging for! Told in an exciting new way, the saga continues with plenty of huge reveals and shocking new twists—plus a complete series guide with beautiful color and black-and-white illustrations and other awesome bonuses!

In this extra special installment of the Keeper of the Lost Cities series, the story picks up right from Legacy’s particularly devastating cliffhanger. But chapters alternate between Sophie and Keefe’s perspectives to give readers deeper insights into both beloved characters. New powers will be discovered. Hard truths from the past will come to light. And all of your favorite characters will find themselves tested in ways they never imagined.

And that's not all!

Unlocked also includes a comprehensive guide to the world of the Lost Cities, featuring new character and world details that have never been revealed before—plus fun bonuses like Keeper-themed recipes, a detailed map of the Lost Cities, gorgeous full-color illustrations, and so much more!

Review:

I’m not going to lie; I normally don’t spend money on these half books….But, I saw what the book looked like at my library. It’s massive. And I figured I owned the whole series already…might as well have them all.  I was a little disappointed to learn that most of this massive book is a Guide to the series about things I already know. It’s maps, registry entries, author’s notes, artwork, activities, recipes, etc. And it’s only the last 200+ pages that are a novella/continuation from book 8.

Is it worth owning? I’d say only if you are a big fan. Otherwise, I recommend getting this one from the library. Do you need to read this before book 9 comes out? YES, you do! A lot happens in the novella. Also, if you’d prefer to skip the boring parts of the guide, and just want to know the good parts (with Keefe) that might interest you, I can tell you! The first 200 pages is the Registry section that goes into details about what the council knows about each important character. Unless you want to brush up on characters you don’t remember that well, feel free to skip this and just read the section on Dex (81) and Keefe (91). They apparently “hacked” the system and made their entries a lot more interesting. If you want a laugh, read their sections only. I thought it was funny.

I also liked the section on Keefe’s memories (479). You see both his drawings and his journal entries about them. You go further into the head of Keefe. What’s not to like about that? But, everything else in the guidebook was a bit of a snore. I read the whole thing because I was kind of in bed all day any way with a GI flare up day and needed a light-hearted distraction from reality. But, honestly, I kind of wish I read a review like this that told me I could skip things.

Then, there’s the novella. You absolutely need to read the novella to be prepared for book 9.  A lot happens in those 200+pages. Also, for the first time, it’s not just in Sophie’s point of view! I don’t want to say who else’s it’s in cause I feel like I’d be seriously spoiling things, but just know, I was remarkably happy with the two points of view.

And I can’t really talk too much about the novella without spoiling things, from book 8 that I worked hard not to mention in that review. Just know that stuff picks up immediately where things ended. A legacy was revealed. Sophie knows who one of her biological parents is. A huge success for the Black Swan happened, but at the risk of all out war that is likely to take place in book 9. And a super important character has left everyone right when they are needed most….Now, the wait for book 9 is going to be killer. What am I going to do now?

I’ve left book 1 on my husband’s nightstand for starters.  And I’ve given the books as presents to some friends already. I have a problem. And I think book 9 is supposed to be the last book? Then what will I do? I give this 8.5 book an 8/10 because the novella was super good. I did not love the guide, except for the Keefe parts. Honestly, I would have been fine if it were just the novella. Then it would have gotten a higher rating.

Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 8: Legacy by Shannon Messenger

Summary from Goodreads:

Illusions shatter—and Sophie and her friends face impossible choices—in this astonishing eighth book in the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling Keeper of the Lost Cities series.

Sophie Foster wants answers. But after a lifetime of lies, sometimes the truth is the most dangerous discovery. Even the smallest secret comes with terrifying new responsibilities.

And Sophie’s not the only one with blank spots in her past, or mysteries surrounding her family. She and her friends are part of something much bigger than they imagined—and their roles have already been chosen for them.

Every clue drags them deeper into the conspiracy. Every memory forces them to question everything—especially one another. And the harder they fight, the more the lines blur between friend and enemy.

Review:

I had a feeling I would love this book, based on the cover alone….I mean it’s Big Ben, and Sophie is levitating, with power coming off of her in sparks, while holding on to Keefe and Fitz. I guessed it had something to do with Keefe’s memory, and I was partly right!

So much happens in this book! And it pretty much continues immediately after where book 7 left off. Sophie has a bit of an angsty argument with Mr. Forkle. I like that a big part of the book focuses on making Sophie work with other members of her team. We get more time with Dex, Biana, Stina, and Wylie (and this made things really interesting). We also learned a lot more about the nobility and the Council.

Sophie gets her second stolen memory back (along with her sister)! And it was awesome to see her again too. There’s another reset that has to happen, more power struggles, some serious political showdowns, lots of action at the Dwarves’ capital city, and Sophie has to balance her new responsibilities, helping one friend find old memories, sort of date someone, lead a team for the council, still figure out her ever growing/increasing powers, and not die will escaping the Neverseen at every turn. Oh, and another friend was taken by the Neverseen in the last book….

A large part of the book is also about finding out who Sophie’s biological parents are…so she can mostly please a certain boy…(that’s all I will say on this extremely annoying matter). But, oh my goodness the cliffhanger with this reveal at the end was crazy. My jaw dropped. It’s also the reason, I went right into book 8.5….I liked this book a lot more than the one before it. The action was much better paced. AKA: half of it didn’t take place in the hospital wing of a school. There wasn’t much school time at all, actually.

The hardest thing about finishing this book was knowing that there won’t be a book 9 for another year…I do have book 8.5 (review to come). But, it’s not the same as a whole book. I’m so glad I found a distracting series to obsess over at this time. I give this one a 9/10.

Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 7: Flashback by Shannon Messenger

Summary from Goodreads:

In this unforgettable seventh book, Sophie must let the past and present blur together, because the deadliest secrets are always the ones that get erased.

Sophie Foster doesn’t know what—or whom—to believe. And in a game with this many players, the worst mistake can be focusing on the wrong threat.

But when the Neverseen prove that Sophie’s far more vulnerable than she ever imagined, she realizes it’s time to change the rules. Her powerful abilities can only protect her so far. To face down ruthless enemies, she must learn to fight.

Unfortunately, battle training can’t help a beloved friend who’s facing a whole different danger—where the only solution involves one of the biggest risks Sophie and her friends have ever taken. And the distraction might be exactly what the villains have been waiting for.

Review:

I’m still obsessed with this series but…..I didn’t love this book as much as the last two. I still flew through the whopping 845 pages in a matter of days. However, the first half of the book took place in the healing center at Foxfire where both Sophie and Fitz were recovering from serious injuries. They were both kind of tortured and dealing with the awful aftermath of something called shadowflux. Nothing like boring, dragging, dramatic Sofitz time to slow a girl’s love a series down.

They dragged their cots close together…So much looking into each other eyes. Also, it was never actually addressed further, but it was seriously alluded to that Fitz’s dad asked Keefe to back off from Sophie! Like excuse me? This is how deep my shipping is going…I’m like shaking as I type this….So while, Keefe actually does back off (for other reasons!) and there is so much whining about recovering, like SO MUCH whining, I debated why I loved this series so much.

And then finally, they characters get out of the healing center….and I remembered why. There’s new characters, new missions, more meetings with evil villains, and lots of more training to fight said evil villains. Sophie now has five bodyguards, (1 from each species except human). A lot is learned about the Vackers, and trolls. Alliances are formed. Through it all, I kept wanting Keefe to make more appearances…I have not given up hope. Oh, and there’s alicorn babies to protect now.

I like that the characters are getting tougher. They are focusing on training. They want to learn how to fight. They used to complain about training and doing anything that required work and practice, but now they finally understand that there are things they need to learn to get better at. They also all seem to be growing more empathetic and understanding of others (other species, cultures, and elves with different abilities). Sophie does seem to have this innate ability to bring everyone together. All of her bodyguards seem to love her. Even the boys she turns down still agree to be friends with her. She’s leadership material for sure. I really feel like I know these characters now. I’ve gotten to know and love (most of) them.

I have to ask: how can she possibly have any eyelashes left? She’s always pulling them out. She literally pulls them out whenever she’s stressed, which is practically all of the time. How does she have any left?

I wish like a quarter of this book didn’t happen. So much of what transpired in the Healing Center was a drag, and did not need to be here. It almost stopped my reading of this series I’ve become so obsessed with. Why were there no editors, trimming this down? And can someone save her eyelashes? I give this one a 7/10.

Snapdragon by Kat Leyh

Summary from Goodreads:

Kat Leyh's Snapdragon is a magical realist graphic novel about a young girl who befriends her town's witch and discovers the strange magic within herself.

Snap's town had a witch.

At least, that's how the rumor goes. But in reality, Jacks is just a Crocs-wearing, internet-savvy old lady who sells roadkill skeletons online. It's creepy, sure, but Snap thinks it's kind of cool, too.

Snap needs a favor from this old woman, though, so she begins helping Jacks with her strange work. Snap gets to know her and realizes that Jacks may in fact have real magic--and an unlikely connection to Snap's family's past.

Review:

I’m not really sure what I was expecting when I sat down one rainy afternoon to read this, but it wasn’t the heartwarming story of love, acceptance, and friendship that I got. I think I was expecting more a fantasy story about dragons and magic. Instead, I got 3-legged dogs, rescued opossums, bullied kids, boys who like to wear dresses, and a long lost lesbian love story. I was pleasantly surprised. So much love was packed into this small graphic novel.

I also have to say that I love reading a graphic novel about a black family and mostly all black characters. I don’t see enough of this. More kids needs to see themselves in the books they read, especially in graphic novels –where everything is so visible. I also loved that magic wasn’t the focal point. It’s kind of a side element of the story. It’s mostly about saving animals and accepting each other’s differences.

This is also a multigenerational story, in that there are kids as the main characters, but the kids are connecting with characters who are grandparent aged. And parents are a part of the story too. Lots of ages are represented in this book.

The artwork is unique. Its unlike a lot of other graphic novels I’ve seen, though now that I see Kat Leyh is the cover artist for Lumberjanes series, that makes a lot of sense to me. I can see some connections, though this is definitely its own special art. I particularly enjoy how the animals and the spirits of animals are portrayed. It just looks so cool. All in all, this was a sweet, cool book to look at it. It makes you feel good. And I hope a lot of people read it. I give it a 9/10.

Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 6: Nightfall by Shannon Messenger

Summary from Goodreads:

Sophie Foster is struggling. Grieving. Scrambling. But she knows one thing: she will not be defeated.

The Neverseen have had their victories—but the battle is far from over. It’s time to change tactics. Make sacrifices. Reexamine everything. Maybe even time for Sophie to trust her enemies.

All paths lead to Nightfall—an ominous door to an even more ominous place—and Sophie and her friends strike a dangerous bargain to get there. But nothing can prepare them for what they discover. The problems they’re facing stretch deep into their history. And with time running out, and mistakes catching up with them, Sophie and her allies must join forces in ways they never have before.

Review:

I regret nothing, starting this book in the middle of the night…I loved getting more information about Sophie’s human family! And I also loved that the action started immediately. There was no tedious waiting for the ball to drop. The kids went right away into a fight with the ogre king. It was like the author was asking me, “You think you should be sleeping? Think again, my friend.” Everything that happened in the beginning was just so goood.

There was not a good place to put this down until the middle when Sophie was mad at Keefe, and I guess the real reason I didn’t love this book as much as the one before it is that there’s a whole week where Keefe was out of commission! And do you have any idea how much happens in one week for these characters? Only a million near death experiences and side missions. Granted, Keefe had to recover from some serious injuries. But, I hated that Sophie was kind of upset with him and not checking in so much…UGH. I hate Fitz. There was too much focus on Fitz in this week.

I have to say that a week with out Keefe’s snark, is a very serious, dramatic week with nowhere near enough jokes, pranks, or laughs. And all of the other characters are way too serious! This book would probably have gotten a much higher rating without this Keefeless week. He is there for the important stuff at the end. And when I say important stuff, I mean look at the cover of the book, and think about the entire city of Atlantis being flooded, and these 3 kids needing to stop it, important. Also, I don’t think Linh ever gets enough credit. She is insanely awesome. And so many people would have died if not for her.

This book of course also had another cliffhanger, but it wasn’t so bad that I had to immediately open book 7…I was actually able to open another book before starting book 7, so yay! I of course am writing this after finishing book 7, so I can’t really talk much. All in all, I give this one an 8/10.

Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 5: Lodestar by Shannon Messenger

Summary from Goodreads:

Dark schemes unfold--and Sophie's loyalty is pushed to the limit--in this thrilling fifth book in the best-selling KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES SERIES.

Sophie Foster is back in the Lost Cities--but the Lost Cities have changed. The threat of war hangs heavy over her glittering world, and the Neverseen are wreaking havoc.

The lines between friend and enemy have blurred, and Sophie is unsure whom to trust. But when she's warned that the people she loves most will be the next victims, she knows she has to act.

A mysterious symbol could be the key--if only she knew how to translate it. Every new clue seems to lead deeper into her world's underbelly and the Black Swan aren't the only ones who have plans. The Neverseen have their own Initiative, and if Sophie doesn't stop it, they might finally have the ultimate means to control her.

Review:

So, this is my favorite one in the series so far. And that really does mean something now because I’m up to book 8 now…I’m so obsessed. I think I read this one the quickest. SO much happened. Also, there was so much Keefe! Keefe is undercover in this book, and there’s all these secret telepathic conversations now between Sophie and him (not just Fitz). There’s also a lot that goes down with Keefe and his mom, and I’m trying to remember the right story arcs….because this was a few books ago for me at this point….

There’s kidnappings, accidental viewings of secret hideouts, tons of information about the Neverseen, about Wylie, about ogres. There’s a political peace summit. There’s creepy Hannibal Lecter type prison scenes. There’s escapes, explosions, and an actual plot twist or two that I did not guess in advance! And there is so much Keefe! He has become the most well written, interesting character. And I am shipping him and Sophie so hard.

Also, Sophie gets another ability! SO much happens in this book and I think I like it so much because you really see how much certain characters have developed and grown over the course of the series. And, the action in this installment is just the best and the most political yet. I loved all the nuances between the species at the summit and learning about different magical cultures. I think it’s interesting that Sophie has this “unique” perspective on everything because she was brought up by humans. There’s this moment when all hell has broken loose toward the end and it’s like all of my favorite genres have combined: spy thrillers, YA novel, romance, magical fantasy, action movie, and comedy. There’s this super sad scene in this book too that actually caused a tear in my eye. This book has everything.

And then of course there was the cliffhanger! For the first time, I broke my rule and went ahead and reached for the next book before reviewing this one. I was spacing out the books and reviewing them and reading at least one other book between each one so my mind would remember them better for the review process….but that cliffhanger. I literally finished the last page of book 5, and in the middle of the night (when I should have been sleeping!) opened up the first page of book 6. That’s how obsessed I am. I give this one a 10/10.