Realistic multicultural fiction. Janna has been wearing her hijab for a while now--she wears it for herself (first) and also for religious reasons. She is often tormented by classmates because she is smart and also for wearing a hijab. But when she is faced with someone in her own community causing her anguish (the worst kind), she loses her voice and courage. She understood that those on the outside could be untrustworthy--but how could one who understands the ways of her culture be a monster?!

This was an interesting read. I learned a lot about a different culture. I don't know how realistic the characters or situations are but it was a good read. I read this a few days ago but nothing really stuck with me to put in this review.

**4.5 stars**

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and her publisher for an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book! I finished it in just a couple days because it was so very entertaining and, somehow, light while still addressing some darker, serious topics.

First, Janna is a protagonist I like a lot. She's nerdy but outspoken, except that she has very real fears that cause her to retreat and shy away from situations. I think I relate to her quite a bit. In the very beginning of the story, she is nearly raped by the "upstanding and outstanding Muslim cousin of her friend" and Janna feels like there is nothing she can do. The monster only continues to torment her, along with many of the other mean-girl-esque teens at her school, while Janna deals with her crush on a non-Muslim boy.

I also really like Janna's best friend, the outgoing, direct Tats. I love how she makes things happen and speaks her voice. She's also a very good friend, even when Janna isn't. I admire that quite a bit. She also embraces Janna's culture, religion, and things important to her without judgment and I like that a lot, too.

Oh, and Nuah! Gush, gush, gush 🥰🥰. Read this one and you'll see why! Yay for nice boys!

I think I didn't quite LOVE this one because it addresses some serious topics: rape, victim shaming, bullying, death, racism, but it didn't feel like a serious book. So, for me, the FEEL of the book didn't match some of the serious topics it addressed. It, sort of, stole away the heaviness that one expects in these situations. Or, it also felt like the topics were quickly wrapped and forgotten? But, maybe that's a good thing?

Either way, I can see why this book is being talked about. Definitely think it's still a good read and would definitely recommend to my students. Since the book doesn't dive too deeply into the serious topics, this one is good for students as young as 7th grade! Maybe, even, 6th graders though it might be harder for them to relate to.

Our library already owns this book and enjoyed it the first time I read. I was so excited for a sequel and really wanted to reread this one. So thank you to Netgalley for the chance to read it quickly. It was even better the second time around!! The new cover is very sweet and I may have to consider adding it to our collection.

Whoa!! I really liked it. I couldn't put this down! I felt like I really was in Janna's head. S. K. Ali is a master storyteller. The ending could have been better and the resolution disappointed me a bit but overall it was pretty realistic in my opinion. I want more! Can't wait to read the sequel.

This book has been on my TBR for so long, and I’m so happy I finally got to it! This was a powerful read, and both emotionally rewarding and challenging to read. It had fantastic Muslim rep (I had some minor issues with the portray of hijab but that’s all) and it did an excellent job at portraying the Muslim community. I loved reading about how empowered the characters were and there were plenty of cute family moments that I absolutely adored!

What I didn’t expect is how dark this book gets. This is not a cute, fluffy contemporary. The main character, Janna is sexually assaulted by someone well respected in the Muslim community, and the book follows her journey in trying to cope and her struggle in wondering if anyone will believe her. The character development Janna goes through blew me away, and I was crying by the end. My heart still aches just thinking about it and it’s a book that will be staying with me for a while.

Hello and welcome to That Introvert Reader! It's world book day! I know we're at home this year, so a lot of people aren't dressing up (or are doing it later), so tell me in the comments who you planned to be/ were!

Anyway, today I bring you a review.

Firstly, thank you to NetGalley for the free E-copy.





Now, before I start, trigger warning for sexual assault.

My initial impression of this book was 'oh hang on this is the woman who wrote Love from A to Z' which I've been pretty desperate to read for a while now. So then I clicked on the thing (yeah, no romantic bookshop magic thing here) and had a read through of this synopsis, and remembered that 'hang on this is on my tbr' so I decided to read it. And it's a very good thing that I read it because I really enjoyed that and it was a five star read for me!

Here's the blurb, and then I'll get you a synopsis.

There are three kinds of people in my world:

1. Saints, those special people moving the world forward. Sometimes you glaze over them. Or, at least, I do. They’re in your face so much, you can’t see them, like how you can’t see your nose.

2. Misfits, people who don’t belong. Like me—the way I don’t fit into Dad’s brand-new family or in the leftover one composed of Mom and my older brother, Mama’s-Boy-Muhammad.

Also, there’s Jeremy and me. Misfits. Because although, alliteratively speaking, Janna and Jeremy sound good together, we don’t go together. Same planet, different worlds.

But sometimes worlds collide and beautiful things happen, right?

3. Monsters. Well, monsters wearing saint masks, like in Flannery O’Connor’s stories.

Like the monster at my mosque.

People think he’s holy, untouchable, but nobody has seen under the mask.

Except me.

Saints and Misfits is narrated by Janna Yusuf, a Muslim teen who was assaulted by a Muslim guy, who is referenced throughout the novel as 'the monster'. Janna is afraid to speak against the monster, though, because she's afraid no one will believe what she says because The Monster is seen as a really good guy, especially because he's memorised the Quran.

Now, don't get me wrong, memorising the entire Quran is super impressive and really difficult so if you've done that, hats off to you because that is incredible, but it doesn't automatically mean that someone is perfect in every way, which is what Janna thinks about a lot in this novel.

There is one scene where Janna's crush walks in on Janna in gym class where she's not wearing her hijab, and Janna freezes up, and a lot of people are upset about that. I don't think the problem is that she froze- because she was panicking or whatever- I think people are more upset that the next day she did her hair extra nice for the gym lesson.

Obviously, this book has a lot of great Muslim rep, as well as Arab and Indian. There's also some Hindu characters in this (STAN MR RAM BEST CHARACTER IN THE WHOLE BOOK) as well as a niqabi character, which we don't see so much in books.

I can't wait for Janna's character to develop further in the sequel which is set like three years later??! Anyway, we've got to wait all the way until MAY 25TH 2021 to get hold of Misfit In Love.

I think that Saints and Misfits did a pretty good job talking about such a heavy topic in a way that is suitable for teenagers.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐!

Go read it.

Thank you for reading this blog post! I really hope you enjoyed it and I've convinced you to at least go consider reading this wonderful book. Have an amazing day, and don't forget to comment your world book day costumes down below. If you want email notifications about my new posts, just put your email in the little subscribe box at the top. I won't spam, I promise.

- Paris

A young Muslim girl learns that no matter the group or family to which you belong, there will always be differences. Good, bad, different. Janna will teach the readers who she is and where her beliefs are centered as she learns that trust is a strength that can be used against you. SK Ali has done a wonderful job of sharing information that teaches as well as entertains. Janna and her family are a wonderful group of characters that I'd love to meet again soon.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this review copy.

“The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it.”

I wanted to read a light and cute read and from nowhere I picked this one, and I only have one problem with this book and that is Why I haven’t read before, I started in the morning and finished it at night.

I was completely submerged in this book. My most favourite thing about this book is that it is different from other books on Islamophobia, It didn’t even slightly try to manipulate Islam in the name of culture or for the sake of glamorization of the book… The content was so original.

Again this book focused that this is not a religion that makes someone bad, it is people who are bad and it doesn’t have anything with any religion.

Janna Yusuf, who is a hijabi but also a teenager, is trying to follow Islam but still, she is human and makes mistakes. It is so easy to relate to her.

I loved her family who never investigates her too much on her any action, Muhammad is such an ideal brother we need this kind of brother in our society. Sausan is such a cool character which I really enjoyed. Characters weren’t one-dimensional as most of the books show Muslim characters so stereotypical. We have characters from Amu, a practical Imam to Farooq, a monster who is using religion to hide his evilness.

“the why you do something is important.”

*Spoiler start*
I read reviews of people complaining that the ending was quick or sudden, I think the ending was perfect, It was about Janna’s bravery and as far as Farooq is concerned, a humiliation in a mosque in front of a community you know for all your life is satisfactory.

*Spoiler end*

P.S I found my name in a book finally, I never thought I’ll ever found it, it was with Arabic pronunciation but who cares I got a book with my name 😁

Thank you, NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Absolutely in love with this book.

S.K. Ali delivers great a contemporary coming-of-age story about a 15-year-old Arab-Indian-American girl named Janna Yusuf.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. There are multiple plots that don’t really connect like pieces of the same jigsaw puzzle, but it delivers on Muslim representation and boasts a diverse set of characters you can really root for. Not without its faults but one I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend.

If you are looking to read more diverse books with POC main characters Saints and Misfits is a great YA novel to start with. Jana is a young Muslim girl growing up near Chicago. She has a deep secret that she is keeping, while also dealing with normal teenage struggles such as divorced parents, friendship struggles, and forbidden love. The novel is solidly YA and nothing special in terms of writing, but that makes Jana feel real and relatable, even if you are not a POC.

I'm trying to read more books with POC main characters, and this YA book fit the bill perfectly. "Saints and Misfits" is told from Janna's perspective, a teenage Muslim girl who's dealing with everything from an attempted sexual assault to surviving a high school math test.

I though SK Ali did a great job creating a character that felt realistic and diverse, and I appreciated that she covered so many different facets of a young girl's life (including boy troubles and homework). There was a good balance between serious and lighthearted content. However, it did feel like there were a few too many side stories and characters. Some of it felt bogged down and I didn't feel like all loose ends were tied up by the end of the novel. I do see why the author has decided to make this book into a series because Janna is a loveable character.

I'd recommend this to YA lovers who want to broaden their horizons from a traditional, white narrative.

Disclaimer: I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Janna’s story really resonates with me and the author did an incredible job at portraying the Muslim community. I’m also a Muslim and I’ve never felt seen or represented so much until this book. I’m so happy that young Muslim kids will get a chance to read about Janna’s story. It’s a heartbreaking story about a young high school girl who is dealing with the trauma of being sexually assaulted. This has never happened to me, but the characters feel so real and authentic. Janna’s got so many different types of people in her community and that reminds me of my Islamic community. S.K. Ali tackles different subjects and still pulls off an incredible ya coming of age novel. If you haven’t read any of S.K. Ali’s books, you should- regardless of whether or not you’re a Muslim.

Review for when I originally read it:
***Since this book, my opinion on S. K. Ali books has skyrocketed and I tend to look back on Saints and Misfits rather fondly. The storyline is heartbreaking yet the concept of self healing and community accountability are really really important.

This was a great book. Nothing exceptional in terms of writing or story line but it was still a good book. It felt like one of those slice of life stories where you hop in an out of a person’s life for a short time. There’s no real inception or resolution and it’s not written as a book with a Big Goal at the end.

There’s that distance of meeting a new person and slowly getting to know them, but not fully because you move on past that relationship. That’s what reading about this MC felt like. You learn about what happened to her, about her school life, the concerns she has during this time. And then you move on. There’s no triumphant ending, at least not for mr as someone who isn’t personally connected to what happened. But the climax is a personal victory for the MC so you wish her well.

A lot of what happens in this book isn’t personal experience so obviously I was very distanced from it. Aspects of being a practicing Muslim, biracial, etc. But the parts where she struggles with the assault that happened to her is visceral pain I felt. I’m again removed from that situation but I would feel my entire body seize up in fear and anger and sadness for her when she relived memories or saw her attacker. I think that’s a testament to the author’s writing and probably also a little bit of that girl to girl empathy link.

I really disliked the main character’s best friend Tats. Like wow talk about someone so wrapped up in their own tourism and entertainment of other people’s lives that they completely forget to respect boundaries and understand non European non Christian cultural norms. Would have dropped that sucker so fast. Or at least had a lengthy conversation on HOW TO RESPECT A HIJABI’S DECION TO STAT COVERED EVEN IF SHE HAS FANTASTIC HAIR TO WOO A CRUSH.

Last point: although I said there was no Big Concluding End Goal message, I will say that this was a lot more about personal healing from trauma and knowing that there are supportive people out there who listen and believe. It’s not your responsibility to use your traumas to catapult a movement of social change. Do what’s best for you first and fuck anyone who pushes you to do more than you can or want.

I enjoyed the portrayal of a young Muslim woman in this book. It felt authentic and relatable. I look forward to future works from this author.

TW: There are mentions of sexual assault

Janna is an Arab Indian-American hijabi teen. She loves reading, photography, and drawing. But an unspeakable action happens towards her that starts to shape how she acts and thinks.

Broken down into types of people, this novel was intriguing. We have monsters who are horrid people that don't seem to care about others; saints are the perfect Muslims that memorize the Qur'an and seem to fit in everywhere. Janna considers herself a misfit, someone that doesn't fit in and just seems to do most things wrong. As each chapter is presented, we know which kinds of people will feature in it. What we never know is how Janna will react.

This was a beautiful representation of the everyday Muslim American community. It was refreshing to see them as human, not as radicals. One of my favorite ways that this novel showed this was Janna's uncle's website. He would answer questions his community had about following their faith while also being themselves. Some examples were if someone could where clothing from a store, or what they should do if they fell for a non-Muslim person. The answers were always well thought out and super reasonable.

It also touched upon how Janna felt when she was almost raped. How it affected her relationships with her friend that happened to be the guy's cousin. And I loved that she was able to finally admit that he was a horrid person to others.

I can't wait for the sequel to come out.

I appreciated that this was on the younger side of YA! I am not Muslim and cannot speak to the rep itself, but I also thought the casual Muslim rep was well-integrated and important.

I loved Janna's relationship with her brother above everything else in this book, as well as the characters Sarah, Nuah, and Mr. Ran. I also loved the focus on friends and family above romance. However, I felt the plot was all over the place, and many of the events and threads seemed halfhearted and disjointed.

Did not realize this wouldn't be avaliable on Kindle. I appreciate being able to read it, but the NetGalley app doesnt work well on my devices and it wouldnt be fair to review it based on that.

This book looks very interesting. Unfortunately, there is no option to send it to Kindle. Also, the PDF file would not open on my computer. The type is way too small to read on the NetGalley app on my phone. I'm sorry I won't have the chance to read this.