Jasmine Warga

Newbery Honor Book! A gorgeously written, hopeful middle grade novel in verse about a young girl who must leave Syria to move to the United States, perfect for fans of Jason Reynolds and Aisha Saeed. Jude never thought she’d be leaving her beloved older brother and father behind, all the way across the ocean in Syria. But when things in her hometown start becoming volatile, Jude and her mother are sent to live in Cincinnati with relatives. At first, everything in America seems too fast and too loud. The American movies that Jude has always loved haven’t quite prepared her for starting school in the US—and her new label of “Middle Eastern,” an identity she’s never known before. But this life also brings unexpected surprises—there are new friends, a whole new family, and a school musical that Jude might just try out for. Maybe America, too, is a place where Jude can be seen as she really is. This lyrical, life-affirming story is about losing and finding home and, most importantly, finding yourself.

Other Words for Home

blue

I am learning how to be sad and happy at the same time.

Americans love labels. They help them know what to expect. Sometimes, though, I think labels stop them from thinking.

It is hard to find a monologue, it is hard to find a place where my favorite actresses are allowed to speak without a man interrupting them before their full thought has been spoken.

I want women like Aunt Michelle to understand that it is not only women who look like them, who are free, who think and care about other women. That it is possible for two things to look similar but be completely different. That I cover my head like other strong respected women have done before me, like Malala Yousafzai like Kariman Abuljadayel like my mama. That I cover my head not because I am ashamed, forced or hiding. But because I am proud and want to be seen as I am.

She is asking me to choose between two things without realizing it is her and people like her that think you have to choose.

It takes me a while to process this, that what Layla is saying is that Americans think it’s normal for there to be violence in places where people like me are from, where people like me and people who look like me live. That they all see people like me and think: violence, sadness, war.

They are paying someone to scrub off the paint, but I am slowly realizing that no amount of money is enough to scrub away the hate.

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