Once Upon a Wonderful

There is something incredibly powerful about seeing yourself reflected in the books you read. In North America, there is a serious lack of books featuring Muslim stories. The books that are published tend to be non-fiction or have Muslim characters portrayed as stereotypes. Amulet Books has taken the lead, thanks to some of North America’s most prominent children’s book authors S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed to publish a beautiful collection of stories all centered on the most holiest of Muslim holidays, Eid. Eid is a day of feasting and family, celebration and thanks. Edited by S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed, this compilation features 15 different stories by 15 different Muslim voices.  Beautifully illustrated by by Sara Alfageeh, Once Upon an Eid is a joyful celebration of stories.

This collection of stories written by different Muslim authors features stories about Eid from multiple perspectives: wealthy, poor, male, female, refugee, and recent convert to Islam. The stories in this collection are also written in different forms, there is a graphic story, stories in prose and a story in verse. There is a story in this collection for each and every Muslim to see themselves and their traditions reflected back to them and for those who are non-Muslim to gain a rich sense of the beauty of these celebrations.

For non-Muslims it's an incredible book to learn more about such a beautiful holiday and celebration. I don’t know about you but there are times when I am shy to ask questions, not wanting to offend or ask something insensitive. Through reading these stories, I have a better understanding of how my neighbours and co-workers celebrate their traditions and holidays and feel confident now to wish them an Eid Mubarak when the time comes.