Tahereh Mafi

It s 2002, a year after 9/11, and Shirin has just started at yet another school. It s an extremely turbulent time for the world, but especially for someone like Shirin, a sixteen-year old Muslim girl who s tired of being stereotyped.  But then she meets Ocean James. He s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin.

A very large expanse of sea

blue

“People are flaming pieces of shit to me, like, all day long, and I’m not supposed to be mad about it?” “You can be mad about it,” Jacobi said, and the sound of his voice startled me. He seemed, suddenly, very serious. “But, like, you seem to think everyone is horrible.” “That’s because everyone is horrible.” Jacobi shook his head. “Listen,” he said, “I know what it’s like to be angry all the time, okay? I do. Your shit—the shit you have to deal with —it’s hard, yeah. But you just—you can’t do this. You can’t be angry all the time. Trust me,” he said. “I’ve tried that. It’ll kill you.”

“Wait, I don’t understand one thing—why would you ditch class with a guy who thinks you don’t exist?” I shook my head. Sighed. “Different guy,” I said. Navid raised his eyebrows. “Different guy?” He glanced at his friends. “You three hearing this shit? She says it was a different guy.” Carlos laughed. “These kids grow up fast,” Jacobi said. Bijan grinned at me and said, “Damn, girl.” “Oh my God,” I said, squeezing my eyes closed. “Shut up, all of you. You’re being ridiculous.” “So who’s the different guy?” Navid asked. “Does he have a name?” I opened my eyes. Stared at him. “No.” Navid’s mouth dropped open. He was half smiling, half surprised. “Wow,” he said. “Wow. You must really like him.” “I don’t like him,” I snapped. “I just don’t want you bothering him.” “Why would we bother him?” My brother was still smiling. “Can we just get started on practice? Please?” “Not until you tell me his name.” I sighed. I knew my evasiveness would only make the situation worse, so I gave in. “His name is Ocean.” Navid frowned. “What the hell kind of a name is Ocean?” “You know, people wonder the same thing about you.” “Whatever,” he said. “My name is awesome.”

is this a trend in books? to make every arab guy lebanese /lh

“Oh,” he said, his eyebrows high. “Cool, cool. I’m Lebanese.”

this is his first guess??? that never happens in real life (at least to me)

“Because you’re crazy intimidating,” he said. “And you don’t even see it. You don’t look at people, you don’t talk to people, you don’t seem to care about anything most kids are obsessed with. I mean, you show up to school looking like you just walked out of a magazine and you think people are staring at you because of something they saw on the news.”

“I just want to know what’s going on,” I said. “I don’t understand why you’re trying so hard to be my friend. I don’t understand why you keep showing up in my life. Do you, like, feel sorry for me or something?” “Oh.” He raised his eyebrows. “Wow.” “Because if you’re just being nice to me because you feel sorry for me, please don’t.” He smiled, a little, and only to himself. “You don’t understand,” he said. It wasn’t a question. “No, I don’t understand. I’m trying to understand and I don’t understand and it’s freaking me out.” He laughed, just once. “Why is it freaking you out?” “It just is.” “Okay.” “You know what?” I shook my head. “Never mind. I think I should go.” “Don’t—” He sighed, hard, cutting himself off. “Don’t go.” He mussed his hair, muttered, “Jesus Christ,” under his breath, and finally said, “I just think you seem cool, okay?” He looked at me. “Is that so hard to believe?” “Kind of.” “I also think you’re really goddamn beautiful but you just won’t give me a chance to be cool about this, will you?”

Kiran Aftab

** spoiler alert **
           I feel like I could relate to a lot of this book starting with the Muslim woman lead, her family relations, and her feelings. She kind of reminded me of what I was like in high school and I genuinely love the way that she speaks because if I don't say something along those lines of what she's saying, I'm definetly thinking it. The little details about inviting Ocean over for dinner and explaining Ramadan and how her parents reacted with him really touched my heart. Also, I remember the section about her trying to explain to people how to pronounce her name and I really felt that one hard (even with the gentle roll of the r). So many of her thoughts about having a crush on someone and how her family and the world would react really hit home. So much of this book perfectly put into words the thoughts in my head. I genuinely loved the explanation and the importance of wearing a hijab and so many important topics were hit in relation to it. I think the only thing is that I wish there was more time maybe going into depth about her breakdancing or other aspects of her life. The beginning of the novel did a good job of doing that and I loved that the author even included a playlist (which I will checkout soon). I'm not someone who loves romance novels without action or adventure or some other interesting factor, but wow I loved the Muslim representation so much in this. I'm giving it a 4/5 due to the cheesiness with the title of the book and Ocean being the main love interest's name, but otherwise this was a good read and I'm happy I bought this book.

Joub

when i tell you this book restored my faith in men. ocean is what atlas should’ve been. also this doesn’t come NEAR her other book but still WOW

Longlisted for the National Book Award for Young People's Literature! From the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Shatter Me series comes a powerful, heartrending contemporary novel about fear, first love, and the devastating impact of prejudice. It’s 2002, a year after 9/11. It’s an extremely turbulent time politically, but especially so for someone like Shirin, a sixteen-year-old Muslim girl who’s tired of being stereotyped. Shirin is never surprised by how horrible people can be. She’s tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments—even the physical violence—she endures as a result of her race, her religion, and the hijab she wears every day. So she’s built up protective walls and refuses to let anyone close enough to hurt her. Instead, she drowns her frustrations in music and spends her afternoons break-dancing with her brother. But then she meets Ocean James. He’s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin. It terrifies her—they seem to come from two irreconcilable worlds—and Shirin has had her guard up for so long that she’s not sure she’ll ever be able to let it down.

A Very Large Expanse of Sea

3.5 of 5 stars

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This book is powerful, emotional, very raw and so realistic. I am aware of this issue in reality as I have a few Muslim acquaintances, though I never witness any of it especially around the 9/11 when this issue was the issue. I didn't know the full impact of that event. I've never think about it in their perspective how hard and different it was for them to live in this world. This was a decent eye-opening read. I admit this book made me shed a few tears for a few times at how ridiculously unfair the world has become. I thanked Tahereh Mafi for all the wonderful, hard-hitting lines she shared to all of us.

Julie Rubens

such a good book! definitely recommend, I think everyone should read this at least once!!

alya adlina

at first i want to give this book 4.5 stars because its so short but nvm i give it 5 stars because this book deserves it. 

so this book is basically about a Muslim-American girl named Shirin, who struggles with racism, hate and degrading comments from being a muslim teen post 9/11. She’s tired of her family moving around to another city and also to make a friends but despite everything she finds comfort in and through breakdancing. 

Shirin was a perfect narrator i gotta say that. She was funny, intelligent, trying to be strong and brave. My heart just broke for her everytime she’s in pain. I just wanted to hug her. I loved watching her character development in this book. The romance in this book is so good. Ocean is perfect for Shirin’s fierceness. They really the went to lot of stuff but they make it till the end.

This book is full of emotions. I laughed, cried and smiled from start till finish. Go read it bestie. I really recommend this book to everyone.

Stevie Gonzales

At first, I thought this was your typical YA (note that the last YA i read was a john green one, i know) BUT OH BOY WAS I WRONG. It was so much more and I love it. It has depth. It talks about issues like racism and Islamophobia. but it also has those cute and adorable parts that makes u giggle like a fucking kid. This book broke me so many times and took my emotions on a roller-coaster ride. I can still remember all the emotions I've felt. How I wanted to punch Mr. Webber during that English class, or how Ocean's curiosity and kindness made melt but also wary of his real intentions (it took me how many chapters before I told myself that I could trust him, as if I was Shirin lol), or how Shirin and Ocean's interactions made me "kilig" and frustrated at the same time. Shirin's relationship with Navid and his friends. I could list everything here, but I'll hold myself back for everyone's sake. I was at the edge of my seat the whole time I was reading and I keep wanting to read more, hence the staying up until 7:30 am to finish this.

I also love the characters. I love Shirin, she's really strong (even when she thinks she's not) yet you can still see that she's just a 16 year old, trying to figure things out. I love Ocean so much because I love how genuine he is and how curious he is about things. He is so pure and adorable that I almost forgot that he is an athlete and can definitely beat the hell out of people. I've ranted about this book and the other characters on my twt so much that I can't wring out words anymore.

I just love this book so much and I am grateful that my friend recommended this to me. She always recommends the good goods.

Lamia Hajani

Sometimes, you just need a cute YA romance book, but you also don't want it to be all about white people with unrealistic obstacles. This book can give you what you're craving- post-9/11 hijabi girl, dealing with physical and verbal violence hurled her way and doing her best to not fall for popular guy with his own set of issues (although he will not quite truly ever understand her issues, probably). 

Oh, and did I mention the main character and her brother start a breakdancing crew?

The writing can be somewhat stilted, the will-they/wont-they plotline is overextended at points but by golly, this was a good and quick read!

alexandra

This book had me in a lot of jumbled up feelings. I still think 

 has the best Muslim representation and reflection of the Muslim experience and livelihood. However 

As a hijabi myself, while I do not condemn other women who do not fully cover their hair or only wear modestly but not full on hijab. There are clear distinctions between someone who is modest and a hijabi. Hijabis have specific religious checklists when it comes to attire that must be adhered to, these include covering your hair completely and not wearing jeans that clearly outline your bottom.

To be very clear I am not saying to be either / or (meaning removing your hijab completely or covering up in a shapeless black abaya). Nor am I saying you cannot wear fitted pants or jeans as long as it’s considered an attire appropriate for hijab.

Ultimately I’ll celebrate alongside my Muslim sisters and empower them because lord knows we need to.

As a story this was more easily read then I expected, I just soared through the last half of the book. I’m really happy to find a book that showcases the problematic assumptions of putting hijabis on some moral pedestal (majority of it being from Muslims themselves). It’s ridiculous, and I am very very tired of it.

Is it sad that I wasn’t surprised by the racist attacks and blatant xenophobia in this book? Yeah it is. Am I surprised that these islamophobes haven’t moved on from the “Aladdin” and “towelhead” insults? Maybe, but then again hypocrites tend to have limited braincells…

Jawahir M

This book had me in a lot of jumbled up feelings. I still think Ayesha At Last has the best Muslim representation and reflection of the Muslim experience and livelihood. However A Very Large Expanse of Sea is not as bad as Netflix’s Elite.

As a hijabi myself, while I do not condemn other women who do not fully cover their hair or only wear modestly but not full on hijab. There are clear distinctions between someone who is modest and a hijabi. Hijabis have specific religious checklists when it comes to attire that must be adhered to, these include covering your hair completely and not wearing jeans that clearly outline your bottom.

To be very clear I am not saying to be either / or (meaning removing your hijab completely or covering up in a shapeless black abaya). Nor am I saying you cannot wear fitted pants or jeans as long as it’s considered an attire appropriate for hijab.

Ultimately I’ll celebrate alongside my Muslim sisters and empower them because lord knows we need to.

As a story this was more easily read then I expected, I just soared through the last half of the book. I’m really happy to find a book that showcases the problematic assumptions of putting hijabis on some moral pedestal (majority of it being from Muslims themselves). It’s ridiculous, and I am very very tired of it.

Is it sad that I wasn’t surprised by the racist attacks and blatant xenophobia in this book? Yeah it is. Am I surprised that these islamophobes haven’t moved on from the “Aladdin” and “towelhead” insults? Maybe, but then again hypocrites tend to have limited braincells…

Alexa M

3.5

this was a really good YA contemporary. i liked how it actually got deep and dug into really important topics. however, the romance fell flat for me but that's okay cause it's between two sixteen year olds LOL. anyways, i would highly recommend this to people who read this genre / anyone in high school!

menna

i wouldn't have believed anyone if they told me i'd be reading a novel with a Muslim Hijabi teen girl as a main character (i wanted a bi muslim girl but i'll take what i can get). I loved Shirin's character, that she was much more than just her religion, her religion was a part of her life not all of it. She felt very real and that's probably due to the fact that it's inspired/about Tahereh Mafi's own high school experience. As i was reading i was either grinning or crying, there was no in between. That's how good it was! I only wish there were more female characters.

Mafi's writing in this book is so much better than it was in shatter me, i don't know if it's because the change of genre or that her writing has gotten better in general but i'm glad for the change because i wouldn't have been able to read it if it was written in the same writing style as shatter me.

A really good book, with super cringe break dancing scenes.

Sophie

A really good book, with super cringe break dancing scenes.




dija

aisha

Izza

4 stars | I'm not totally happy about how it ended...

Kelsey Joëlle

This book contains so much. The book is as important as THUG in my opinion. Read it, really. It'll open your eyes.

I liked the main character in this book. She’s so awesome. I also loved the boy, because of how caring and considerate he is

manuela

Carrington Kinslow

“But one day, in the aftermath of a terrible tragedy, I’d woken up in the spotlight. It didn’t matter that I was just as shaken and horrified as everyone else; no one believed my grief.” 

“A Very Large Expanse of Sea” truly blew my mind. I did not anticipate to fall in love with this book as much as I did. This is a phenomenal dive into a post-9/11 America for young Muslim women. I learned so much from this book, and I really appreciated how I was forced to step out of my bubble of ignorance and reevaluate the ugliest parts of America’s grief. This book made me feel ashamed, horrified, angry, and heartbroken. There is so much emotion packed into this book, and Mafi’s writing and storytelling ensure that you feel all of it. 

I adored our main character, Shirin, as well as her friend/love interest, Ocean. Both are very nuanced characters who have such a complex relationship. I was rooting for them so hard, I loved them so much. The bittersweet ending was so beautiful and honestly, so painful to read. But it really fit the story so well. Unfortunately, not all stories have happy endings, and Mafi manages to illustrate that while also leaving room for hope depending on a reader's interpretation. I think that Shirin and Ocean's ending fit the narrative very well, it isn't emotional just because Mafi wants to toy with her readers. I think that from the very beginning, it is evident what kind of novel it is going to be. 

At a little over 300 pages, this is pretty short and reads super quickly. I had to make myself stop from reading this in one sitting because I just wanted to savor it. I even found myself rereading pages, scenes, and passages over and over again.

This book just has so much value. There’s so much to learn about in “A Very Large Expanse of Sea,” including womanhood, independence, love, grief, anger, and identity. All of these themes, and more, are explored thoroughly and realistically. It’s impossible to not have some part of you changed after reading this book. 

Tahereh Mafi made me laugh, she made me angry, and she brought me to tears with this book. This was such a moving experience, and I could not be happier that this found its way to me in the store. A new all time favorite that I cannot possibly recommend enough. 

5/5

Kailey Rios

i definitely feel like i’m in the minority when i say i didn’t love this, which makes me sad because i for sure thought i would.

the writing was fine and i liked most of the characters a decent amount, i just wasn’t expecting it to be so heavy on the romance for some reason?

the relationship between shirin and ocean was cute and all but i just feel like it kind of overshadowed everything and i wish the focus would’ve been given to other parts of the story a little more.

i would’ve liked more of the breakdancing storyline to have been incorporated, it kind of felt shoved to the side for the majority of the book.

another thing i didn’t love was how back and forth the romance was, after like the fourth time shirin pushed ocean away i was just kind of over it.

the ending was pretty solid and i’m glad representation like this exists, i just wish the story was better.


  3 stars

Tracie McMurray

This teen novel illustrates micro-aggressions so clearly that adults would benefit from reading it as well. The main character, Shirin, is a 16-year-old girl who wears a head scarf, and as a result, faces scrutiny from her community. The setting is 2002 and the teens and adults in her small town are filled with racist questions, comments, and beliefs. I loved this book, and I would recommend it to anyone. Her feelings, so beautifully written by Mafi, are extremely relatable. 

*If you are offended by authentic teen dialogue which generally contains swearing, you may not love this book.

Shereen Evans

I picked up this book not really knowing what it was. The cover drew me to the book. I listened to this on audio book. It was a little weird hearing my name at first.

This book was pretty good. There was so much going on but yet was able to keep up with the story line. The relationship between Shirin and Ocean not only had the difficulty of being together and having different religious beliefs but also shows that there are people that don't care about those things but about the person and accepts them for who they are. 

I definitely with be picking up the book copy of this. I can see myself rereading this book!

Steph L 

A fantastic YA Book 

This book was absolutely fantastic and I loved it. The characters in this book are real and flawed. The plot of this book was excellent. Writing is something I look forward to In a novel, and the writing n this book was fantastic. The romance was so sweet and I loved it. I recommend this for anyone who enjoys YA Contemporary.

A very large expanse of sea

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