Not Now, Noor!

Product Information

She briefly worked as product designer in Japan and Indonesia before moving to the United States to study children's book illustration. Born and raised in Newcastle Upon Tyne and currently residing in Birmingham, Farhana Islam is a Primary School Teacher with a passion for telling stories and empowering diverse voices. The illustrations are cute, the character designs are great, and I'm really excited for kids to be able to feel represented by the media they consume. Perhaps the trend has me more frustrated than this book on its own warrants, it really is sweet and I don't regret purchasing it and having it sent from the UK.

The book articulates that we are Muslim and that hijab defines us, which I love, it just seems that while the rest of the book is incredibly direct and funny, the answer is fuzzy and lyrical. This instructive board book opens with the simple statement that many religious people wear head coverings to show their love of God.The book is beautifully illustrated, the size is great to be shared, the text funny, the voice playful,the joy contagious but the answer for me, just missed the mark, not by a lot, but by enough that I think an adult would need to supplement the overall takeaway message. Just as Noor is ready to give up on her hijab quest, her Ammu arrives home and knows just the thing to say. When Noor finally gets to her mom it is she who answers with poetic lyricism, "We are Muslim women, my Noor, Unapologetic and true. She originally studied Industrial Product Design in Bandung Institute of Technology earning her degree in 2013 yet found her way into illustration later in life. Nabila Adani lives in Jakarta Indonesia and enjoys illustrating different cultures around the world.

Just as Noor is ready to give up on her quest, her Ammu arrives home and knows just the thing to say. Bright, colourful and highly engaging, this is a book I could not wait to share with both my class and in my little lunchtime Story Club, where it proved a huge hit this week. Farhana is a Birmingham based primary school teacher turned author with a passion for empowering diverse voices through story-telling.The next page shows Noor's bustling family and she compares how her Ammu's hijab is not the same as her Nanu's or Dadu's or Aunt's or even her sister's, but she doesn't know why any of them wear it. Telling the story of young Noor, who is desperate to find out why the female members of her family wear hijabs, this is a read which will delight young readers. It is by no means wrong, it just at the end presents what hijab means, the benefits of wearing it, and one's personal feelings toward it, while skirting the answer the girl keeps asking of why?

Noor’s facial expressions, from excitement to dismay, are brilliantly funny and work well alongside the text. Using a vibrant colour palette of reds, yellows and purples, the beautiful artwork is full of emotion and movement. This heart-warming yet funny tale is a celebration of Muslim women, curious children, and family love.For those who are Muslim, it shows authentic representation of hijabis and for those who are not, it answers the types of questions that naturally curious children will have such as whether hair coverings are worn to hide big ears or secret snack stashes to feast upon at a later time. Noor’s imaginative thoughts on why her relatives may wear hijab made me smile and I really liked the fact that when she finally gets an answer, her mum stresses how it is Noor’s choice to wear hijab but that it does go to her mum’s identity as a Muslim and she is unapologetic about that. This is such an important book to help children to understand more about other cultures and beliefs and it is great to see picture books representing everybody in our community. Back to the story, Noor starts by asking her sister, the coolest hijabi she knows, if she wears it to hide her snacks in, or hide her big ears, but Affa brushes her off with a, "not now, Noor" and she is off to the next family member to ask. It may have perks of keeping your ears warm, fashion, or hiding your earbuds, but that isn't why Muslim women wear hijab.

It allows for a serious conversation about hijab to occur after, and it intentionally pushes the humor, which I definitely think we need more of in Muslim centered books. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Inspired by the experiences of Olympic medallist Ibtihaj Muhammad, this is a beautiful and powerful story about the bond shared between siblings and being proud of yourself and your beliefs. I appreciate that they are in the dining room at home and thus not wearing a scarf, Nanu is because Dada is in the picture, authenticity which I love seeing, but children need a little more hand holding to see which person the text is talking about. Farina Islam and Nabila Adani’s picture book is a bright, cheerful and slightly cheeky look at what the hijab is and why some Muslim women wear it.

The biggest question on her mind is why her Ammu (mum) and the other women in her family wear a hijab (headscarf). Each time the rationale gets more outrageous: hide the eyes on the back of your head, prevent you from getting nits, etc.