Reading with Maryam – Discovering Muslim Children’s Books that Delight and Inspire

The Best Eid Ever. By Asma Mobin-Uddin. Illustrated by Laura Jacobsen. (Boyd Mills Press, 2007). I discovered this gem at my local public library. It’s the story of a young Pakistani American girl who befriends and helps two refugee girls she meets at the mosque on Eid al Adha, one of the most important Islamic festivals. Most Muslim holiday books focus on the “other Eid,” which concludes Ramadan; perhaps children’s authors have avoided Eid al Adha because it commemorates Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son to serve God, which can be a rather difficult story for young children to hear.

Rather than address the story directly, this book conveys beautifully a core value of the holiday – sharing with those who are less fortunate. I shared this book with my daughter’s preschool class, modifying it to make it more age-appropriate, and the little ones got that core message even if the details escaped them. (It’s perhaps ideal for seven or eight-year-olds). One note: This book isn’t available on Amazon, but you can get it at Barnes and Noble online.