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4.38 AVERAGE
4.38 AVERAGE
I received a free eARC of this book.
Kareem is a child, stuck between two worlds. A Syrian-American Moslem, he was born in the US, to immigrant parents. He struggles with Arabic in Saturday school. He struggles to fit in at school. He loves football, but doesn’t make the team, He struggles to be a good friend to the Syrian refugees sponsored by his mosque because he wants to fit in, and is taken advantage of by the football coach’s son. He loves talking to his grandfather about sports, school, and life, but have never met him in person-but has a chance-his mother is going to Syria to bring her father and mother back to the US, where her father can get the treatment he needs.
But, a few months before Donald Trump was elected, and one of his first acts is to ban immigration from predominantly Moslem countries.
Kareem Between is a beautiful book, and one that is particularly timely. I’m writing this only weeks after Donald Trump’s second election, running, again, on a platform of anti-immigration and hate, leaving, many people, like Kareem, feeling stuck. This book should be read. It should be studied. It should be understood.
Kareem is a child, stuck between two worlds. A Syrian-American Moslem, he was born in the US, to immigrant parents. He struggles with Arabic in Saturday school. He struggles to fit in at school. He loves football, but doesn’t make the team, He struggles to be a good friend to the Syrian refugees sponsored by his mosque because he wants to fit in, and is taken advantage of by the football coach’s son. He loves talking to his grandfather about sports, school, and life, but have never met him in person-but has a chance-his mother is going to Syria to bring her father and mother back to the US, where her father can get the treatment he needs.
But, a few months before Donald Trump was elected, and one of his first acts is to ban immigration from predominantly Moslem countries.
Kareem Between is a beautiful book, and one that is particularly timely. I’m writing this only weeks after Donald Trump’s second election, running, again, on a platform of anti-immigration and hate, leaving, many people, like Kareem, feeling stuck. This book should be read. It should be studied. It should be understood.
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
This was an excellent read. It humanizes the immigrant experience in the current political landscape. It was very interesting to read about it from a young person’s perspective. Shifa Safadi explains things in a way that middle grade students with be able to understand and appreciate what happened and continues to happen.
Congrats on the NBA award, well deserved.
Congrats on the NBA award, well deserved.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I recently finished reading Kareem Between just in time to see Shifa Saltagi Safadi win the 2024 National Book Award for Young People's Literature, a well earned accolade for this powerful middle grade novel in verse. Safadi has created such a lovable character in Kareem, and I believe many of my students (particularly the football fans) will enjoy reading his story. From a teacher perspective, this book is rife with curricular opportunities, and I'm looking forward to introducing my students to this one and adding it to my classroom library.
Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced reader copy.
Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced reader copy.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A very touching story that will show more how the Muslim ban affected and continues to affect Muslim families. I appreciated his journey, although Kareem was hard to like in the beginning, it was easy to understand his mindset when we look at what he faced. I wasn't the biggest fan of the lyrical technique used, I think the book would have functioned better in longform, but was still a good read.
Thanks to #PENGUIN_ GROUP:Penguin_Young_Readers_Group #G.P.Putnam'sSonsBooksforYoungReaders #NetGalley For letting me read an advance copy of Kareem Between in exchange for my honest review. #KareemBetween #ChicagoBears #MiddleSchool #ChestertonIN #Syrian-American #2017 #novels-in-verse #own_voices
I loved this book. It is, first of all, set in Chesterton, IN and features a young man who is a serious Chicago Bears fan. Each of his chapters begins with an NFL Fact, and his own ambition to play football is tied up with his admiration for the Chicago Bears and particularly the legendary team of Super Bowl XX. My friends don't understand how extremely happy I am at the idea of Governor Walz (D MN) running for Vice President, or how unhappy I am to hear the Midwest referred to as "flyover country" so Kareem had me at "Chicago Bears".
And I'm a Green Bay Packer fan. However, you can love this book even if you don't love football. The poems are accessible, though there are some with unusual typography, enough to merit discussion if you're learning about poetry. The format makes the book appealing to reluctant readers, and the content is true to the Middle School experience.
Kareem is stuck in the middle -- between his two cultures, between his two languages, between his older sister and younger brother, and in Middle School, where he desperately wants to make the football team. Kareem struggles with a bully, with questions of loyalty and friendship, and with much larger issues that impact his family directly.
I was rooting for him, and I think Middle Grade students will find him "relatable" and enjoy the story. Highly recommended.
I loved this book. It is, first of all, set in Chesterton, IN and features a young man who is a serious Chicago Bears fan. Each of his chapters begins with an NFL Fact, and his own ambition to play football is tied up with his admiration for the Chicago Bears and particularly the legendary team of Super Bowl XX. My friends don't understand how extremely happy I am at the idea of Governor Walz (D MN) running for Vice President, or how unhappy I am to hear the Midwest referred to as "flyover country" so Kareem had me at "Chicago Bears".
And I'm a Green Bay Packer fan. However, you can love this book even if you don't love football. The poems are accessible, though there are some with unusual typography, enough to merit discussion if you're learning about poetry. The format makes the book appealing to reluctant readers, and the content is true to the Middle School experience.
Kareem is stuck in the middle -- between his two cultures, between his two languages, between his older sister and younger brother, and in Middle School, where he desperately wants to make the football team. Kareem struggles with a bully, with questions of loyalty and friendship, and with much larger issues that impact his family directly.
I was rooting for him, and I think Middle Grade students will find him "relatable" and enjoy the story. Highly recommended.