Zara's Rules for Finding Hidden Treasures

Book 2 of this amazing series and I just absolutely LOVED it!!!

Genre: Chapter Book

Ages: 6-9

Author: @henakhanbooks

Illustrator: @wastanahaikal

Publisher: @simonkids

Zara is back with more fun! This book, Zara’s new shiny bike disappears and she has to figure out how to save money for a new one. So she recycles “trash” or knicknacks no one in her family wants for “treasure” that she sells to other people. But when she accidentally sells things that her mother wants, she has to go and get them back and give most of the money back. Zara has to come up with a new way to make the money and she learns an appreciation for things that aren’t exactly new!

I just am obsessed with this book!!! I love how Zara is a proud Muslim girl who just lives her life and is proud of her identity and is confident in who she is. I love how Islam was mentioned a lot, with the mosque mentioned, Eid mentioned, inshaAllahs and asalamu Alaikums, and so much more!! It was absolutely delightful to see how Islam was seamlessly woven into the story and a part of her life but not a crisis at all!

I also love the interfaith and diverse nature of this book, and how Zara‘s best friend is a young Jewish girl who we get to learn more about and see practice her own faith of Orthodox Judaism. I love learning about what a bar/bat mitzvah is and I love seeing how Zara participates in supporting her Jewish friend. Seeing the diverse community in the neighborhood was just so delightful to read!!

I also really like the idea of recycling and upcycling “old” things to make new uses for them and how the theme in the book was finding treasures in what you already have! It was not done in a preachy way, but was absolutely done in a teachable way for young children and is a much needed topic, because children these days have a lot of material possessions and it is wonderful for them to learn to appreciate what they have and not always seek the newest most shiny thing! The concept of charity was also wonderful to see and it was done at a mosque which was amazing!

I love the family connections and the funny wit of the writing (the book made me laugh out loud)!

Def a must have❤️

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