Author Page
Shifa Saltagi Safadi is the author of the forthcoming Middle Grade verse novel KAREEM BETWEEN (Putnam 2024), the AMINA BANANA chapter books (Putnam 2025), picture book THE GIFT OF EID (Holiday House 2025), and three published picture books (SPELL IT LIKE SAMAR, HEAVEN AT MAMA'S FEET, and PEPPERONI, PITCHES, and OTHER PROBLEMS) with indie Muslim publisher Ruqaya’s Bookshelf.
Shifa has a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and teaches ELA at a local middle school.
Shifa is a part of the team at MixedupFilesMG who conduct interviews with and help promote Middle Grade authors.
Shifa is also a member of Muslim Book Reviewers, who host the annual Muslim Bookstagram Awards, as well as provide beta reading/sensitivity reading consultations for a variety of publishers.
Shifa was born in Syria and immigrated to the US with her parents as a young girl. She lives near Chicago with her husband and four children.​
For any literary inquiries:
Please contact Agent Janine Le of Janine Le Literary Agency.​
Check out Shifa's books below:
Upcoming Books
KAREEM BETWEEN
Coming from Putnam Kids in Fall 2024
THE GIFT OF EID
Coming from Holiday House in Winter 2025
Published Books:
HEAVEN AT MAMA'S FEET
Since Ibrahim's little brother Musa was born, Ibrahim hasn't been feeling very special anymore. At Musa's Aqeeqah, he learns that Heaven is at his mom's feet, so he decides he wants heaven to be at his feet, too! Maybe if he copies what his mom does, he will finally be special again, just like her. Can Ibrahim do everything Mama does or are her shoes too big to fill?
SPELL IT LIKE SAMAR
Samar has recently moved to America from Syria, and everything is new. Even the jump rope games at recess are unfamiliar. It doesn't help that Jenna, the class bully, keeps making fun of Samar's accent. Samar decides to enter the school spelling bee to prove once and for all that she's smarter than everyone thinks! But learning the words turns out harder than she thought. Can Samar be persistent and compete in the school spelling bee?
PEPPERONI, PITCHES, AND OTHER PROBLEMS
Amira used to love eating cheese pizza and playing baseball with her friends. But at her new school, she sits all alone and can't even have her cheese pizza slice because of Olivia! After hitting a home-run during gym, Amira finally gets noticed by the popular crowd. She's so excited to have friends that she doesn't pay attention to Olivia's tears...or Elena's narrowed eyes.