Misfit in Love

Misfit in Love
Author: S. K. Ali
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 320
Release: 2021-05-25
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1534442774

In this fun and fresh sequel to Saints and Misfits, Janna hopes her brother’s wedding will be the perfect start to her own summer of love, but attractive new arrivals have her more confused than ever. Janna Yusuf is so excited for the weekend: her brother Muhammad’s getting married, and she’s reuniting with her mom, whom she’s missed the whole summer. And Nuah’s arriving for the weekend too. Sweet, constant Nuah. The last time she saw him, Janna wasn’t ready to reciprocate his feelings for her. But things are different now. She’s finished high school, ready for college…and ready for Nuah. It’s time for Janna’s (carefully planned) summer of love to begin—starting right at the wedding. But it wouldn’t be a wedding if everything went according to plan. Muhammad’s party choices aren’t in line with his fiancée’s taste at all, Janna’s dad is acting strange, and her mom is spending more time with an old friend (and maybe love interest?) than Janna. And Nuah’s treating her differently. Just when things couldn’t get more complicated, two newcomers—the dreamy Haytham and brooding Layth—have Janna more confused than ever about what her misfit heart really wants. Janna’s summer of love is turning out to be super crowded and painfully unpredictable.

Saints and Misfits

Saints and Misfits
Author: S. K. Ali
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2017-06-13
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 1481499246

Fifteen-year-old Janna Yusuf, a Flannery O'Connor-obsessed book nerd and the daughter of the only divorced mother at their mosque, tries to make sense of the events that follow when her best friend's cousin--a holy star in the Muslim community--attempts to assault her at the end of sophomore year.

Love from Mecca to Medina

Love from Mecca to Medina
Author: S. K. Ali
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 400
Release: 2022-10-18
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1665916095

On the trip of a lifetime, Adam and Zayneb must find their way back to each other in this surprising and romantic sequel to the “bighearted, wildly charming” (Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author) Love from A to Z that’s a “contemplative exploration of faith, love, and the human condition” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). Adam and Zayneb. Perfectly matched. Painfully apart. Adam is in Doha, Qatar, making a map of the Hijra, a historic migration from Mecca to Medina, and worried about where his next paycheck will come from. Zayneb is in Chicago, where school and extracurricular stresses are piling on top of a terrible frenemy situation, making her miserable. Then a marvel occurs: Adam and Zayneb get the chance to spend Thanksgiving week on the Umrah, a pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, in Saudi Arabia. Adam is thrilled; it’s the reboot he needs and an opportunity to pray for a hijra in real life: to migrate to Zayneb in Chicago. Zayneb balks at the trip at first, having envisioned another kind of vacation, but then decides a spiritual reset is calling her name too. And they can’t wait to see each other—surely, this is just what they both need. But the trip is nothing like what they expect, from the appearance of Adam’s former love interest in their traveling group to the anxiety gripping Zayneb when she’s supposed to be “spiritual.” As one wedge after another drives them apart while they make their way through rites in the holy city, Adam and Zayneb start to wonder: was their meeting just an oddity after all? Or can their love transcend everything else like the greatest marvels of the world?

Love from A to Z

Love from A to Z
Author: S. K. Ali
Publisher: Salaam Reads / Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2019-04-30
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1534442723

A Today Show Read with Jenna Book Club Pick “The bighearted, wildly charming, painfully real love story I’ve been waiting for.” —Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda From William C. Morris Award Finalist S.K. Ali comes a “heartfelt and powerful” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) romance that’s The Sun Is Also a Star meets Anna and the French Kiss, following two Muslim teens who meet during a spring break trip. A marvel: something you find amazing. Even ordinary-amazing. Like potatoes—because they make French fries happen. Like the perfect fries Adam and his mom used to make together. An oddity: whatever gives you pause. Like the fact that there are hateful people in the world. Like Zayneb’s teacher, who won’t stop reminding the class how “bad” Muslims are. But Zayneb, the only Muslim in class, isn’t bad. She’s angry. When she gets suspended for confronting her teacher, and he begins investigating her activist friends, Zayneb heads to her aunt’s house in Doha, Qatar, for an early start to spring break. Fueled by the guilt of getting her friends in trouble, she resolves to try out a newer, “nicer” version of herself in a place where no one knows her. Then her path crosses with Adam’s. Since he got diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in November, Adam’s stopped going to classes, intent, instead, on perfecting the making of things. Intent on keeping the memory of his mom alive for his little sister. Adam’s also intent on keeping his diagnosis a secret from his grieving father. Alone, Adam and Zayneb are playing roles for others, keeping their real thoughts locked away in their journals. Until a marvel and an oddity occurs… Marvel: Adam and Zayneb meeting. Oddity: Adam and Zayneb meeting.

The Misfit's Manifesto

The Misfit's Manifesto
Author: Lidia Yuknavitch
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 160
Release: 2017-10-24
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 1501120069

The author explores the status of being a misfit as something to be embraced, and social misfits as being individuals of value who have a place in society, in a work that encourages people who have had difficulty finding their way to pursue their goals.

If He Had Been with Me

If He Had Been with Me
Author: Laura Nowlin
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.
Total Pages: 338
Release: 2013-04-02
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1402277849

If he had been with me everything would have been different... I wasn't with Finn on that August night. But I should've been. It was raining, of course. And he and Sylvie were arguing as he drove down the slick road. No one ever says what they were arguing about. Other people think it's not important. They do not know there is another story. The story that lurks between the facts. What they do not know—the cause of the argument—is crucial. So let me tell you...

That Thing We Call a Heart

That Thing We Call a Heart
Author: Sheba Karim
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 172
Release: 2017-05-09
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 0062445723

This young adult novel by Sheba Karim, author of Skunk Girl, is a funny and affecting coming-of-age story for fans of Jenny Han, Megan McCafferty, and Sara Farizan. A Kirkus Best Book of 2017! Shabnam Qureshi is facing a summer of loneliness and boredom until she meets Jamie, who scores her a job at his aunt’s pie shack. Shabnam quickly finds herself in love, while her former best friend, Farah, who Shabnam has begun to reconnect with, finds Jamie worrying. In her quest to figure out who she really is and what she really wants, Shabnam looks for help in an unexpected place—her family, and her father’s beloved Urdu poetry. That Thing We Call a Heart is a funny and fresh story about the importance of love—in all its forms.

Geek Girl: Model Misfit

Geek Girl: Model Misfit
Author: Holly Smale
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 231
Release: 2015-07-21
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 0062333623

You can make a geek a model, but you can't make her chic. More hilarity and high fashion await in the second book in the internationally bestselling Geek Girl series, perfect for fans of Morgan Matson and Julie Buxbaum! Harriet Manners is a model—but she feels even less popular and more awkward than she did when she was just a geek. So a summer modeling job in Japan sounds like the perfect vacation, even if she has to bring along her crazy grandma Bunty, and even if she might run into Nick, her gorgeous supermodel ex-boyfriend. No one is going to ruin Harriet's fabulous Tokyo adventure—unless she accidentally ruins it herself.

A Different Kind of Hero

A Different Kind of Hero
Author: Sally Clarkson
Publisher: NavPress
Total Pages: 129
Release: 2017-01-24
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 149642039X

A Different Bible study experience! This guided journey through Scripture is for anyone who: Knows what it’s like to just not fit in; longs to feel known, safe, and understood; and wonders where they truly belong. Join beloved author Sally Clarkson and her son Joel in this 12-session exploration of misfits in the Bible—and the surprising ways they became heroes of the faith. God has always taken ordinary people—like Peter, Ruth, Job, and Elijah—and used them to accomplish great things. You’ll learn how God can take your own weaknesses and turn them into strengths as he draws you outside the safety of yourself and into the glorious whirlwind of His plan for your life. (A companion resource to Different: The Story of an Outside-the-Box Kid and the Mom Who Loved Him, by Sally and Nathan Clarkson.)

Once Upon an Eid

Once Upon an Eid
Author: S. K. Ali
Publisher: Abrams
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2020-05-05
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1683358031

A joyous short story collection by and about Muslims, edited by New York Times bestselling author Aisha Saeed and Morris finalist S. K. Ali Once Upon an Eid is a collection of short stories that showcases the most brilliant Muslim voices writing today, all about the most joyful holiday of the year: Eid! Eid: The short, single-syllable word conjures up a variety of feelings and memories for Muslims. Maybe it’s waking up to the sound of frying samosas or the comfort of bean pie, maybe it’s the pleasure of putting on a new outfit for Eid prayers, or maybe it’s the gift giving and holiday parties to come that day. Whatever it may be, for those who cherish this day of celebration, the emotional responses may be summed up in another short and sweet word: joy. The anthology will also include a poem, graphic-novel chapter, and spot illustrations. The full list of Once Upon an Eid contributors include: G. Willow Wilson (Alif the Unseen, Ms. Marvel), Hena Khan (Amina's Voice, Under My Hijab), N. H. Senzai (Shooting Kabul, Escape from Aleppo), Hanna Alkaf (The Weight of Our Sky), Rukhsana Khan (Big Red Lollipop), Randa Abdel-Fattah (Does My Head Look Big in This?), Ashley Franklin (Not Quite Snow White), Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow (Mommy's Khimar), Candice Montgomery (Home and Away, By Any Means Necessary), Huda Al-Marashi (First Comes Marriage), Ayesha Mattu, Asmaa Hussein, and Sara Alfageeh.