Night of the Moon by Hena Khan

Hardcover, 32 pages

Published September 1st 2008 by Chronicle Books

Yasmeen, a seven-year-old Pakistani-American girl, celebrates the Muslim holidays of Ramadan, "The Night of the Moon" (Chaand Raat), and Eid. With lush illustrations that evoke Islamic art, this beautiful story offers a window into modern Muslim culture—and into the ancient roots from within its traditions have grown.

This book was beautifully written and illustrated. Over the past year, I have read more and more about the Muslim community. It is utterly fascinating. This beautiful story does just what the review says... opens a window into modern Muslim culture while weaving in the traditional roots. My daughter enjoyed learning about Ramadan from Yasmeen (my daughter is 8, so it was completely relate-able to her). Simply beautiful! 



Teaching Ideas:
This is a great text to pair in a Social Studies class when you are discussing modern cultures. It could also be paired when discussing the events of September 11 while discussing the differences in the Taliban and the Muslim community (which many assume are related). This text would also be a good read aloud for younger students when discussing different holidays or cultures as well.

Here are links to some of the other books that I have read about the Muslim community and the Middle East:

The Butterfly Mosque: A Young American Woman's Journey to Love and Islam by G. Willow Wilson

Words in the Dusty by Trent Reedy

Torn by David Massey

Happy reading!