By Hena Khan, Illustrated by Wastana Haikal, Salaam Reads / Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Paperback, 144 pages
From the beloved author of Amina's Voice comes the first book in a humor-filled middle grade series starring a young Muslim girl with an endless list of hobbies who searches for ways to maximize fun for her family and neighborhood friends.
Meet Zara Saleem, the queen of the neighborhood.
Zara's in charge of it all: she organizes the games, picks the teams, and makes sure everyone has a good time...and they always do.
When a new family moves in across the street, suddenly Zara's reign is threatened by Naomi, who has big ideas of her own about how the neighborhood kids can have fun. To get everyone to notice her again, Zara decides she's going to break a Guinness World Record--if her little brother Zayd doesn't mess things up.
But when she finds herself increasingly alone in her record-breaking quest, Zara starts to wonder if sharing the crown and making a new friend might end up being the best rule of all.
Ten-year-old (nearly eleven) Zara's nickname is "Queen of the Neighborhood" because she organizes the other children (even the older ones), sets the rules, and generally makes sure everyone has fun; but now another ten-year-old, Naomi, has moved in across the street and she has her own ideas about fun games, and suddenly the other kids (even Zara's younger brother Zayd) are listening to Naomi--if she is going to retain her influence Zara needs to come up with something quick, and an old copy of the Guinness Book of World Records gives her an idea.
About the author:
Hena Khan is a Pakistani American writer. She is the author of the middle grade novels Amina's Voice, Amina's Song, More to the Story, and the Zara's Rules series and picture books Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns, Under My Hijab, and It's Ramadan, Curious George, among others. Hena lives in her hometown of Rockville, Maryland, with her family. You can learn more about Hena and her books by visiting her website at HenaKhan.com or connecting with her @HenaKhanBooks.
