Other Words for Home
With tensions mounting in Syria, Jude and her pregnant mother leave the country to stay with her maternal uncle, aunt, and cousin in Cincinnati, Ohio, leaving behind her father, college-age brother, and home. Jude has to adjust to American life, culture, and middle school, not to mention a self-centered cousin who has little initial interest in interacting with her—although they do watch TV together. She remains trusting, which makes it all the more painful when she encounters Islamophophia after she begins wearing hijab and even strangers can see that she’s Muslim. Still, there are many good things happening, from getting to know her uncle and aunt and kids in her ELL class to the pending arrival of a baby sister. Even her cousin slowly becomes a friend. But she’s worried about her father and brother—he’s involved in protests—and best friend back home, and it seems no one at her school really understands or cares about what’s happening in Syria. This verse novel is a quick and easy read in Jude’s open, observant, engaging voice. The story, which begins just prior to the start of the Syrian Civil War, is global in scope, while personal in scale, and quietly triumphant. ©2020 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 8-12
Age Range:
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13)
Format:
Novel
Subjects:
21st Century
Cousins
English Language Learners
Friendship
Immigration and Immigrants
Islamophobia
Muslim People
Novels in Verse
School
Syrians and Syrian Americans
War
World History
Worry
Diversity subjects:
Arab
Asian
Middle East
Muslim
Publishers:
Balzer + Bray, HarperCollins
Publish Year: 2019
Pages: 352
ISBN: 9780062747808
CCBC Location: Fiction, Warga