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Yasmin #12
Yasmin the Writer
Ms. Alex has assigned Yasmin's class to write about their heroes. Yasmin loves to write, but she can't decide who her hero is. After dismissing lots of ideas, could it be that Yasmin's hero has been right beside her all along?
32 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2020
About the author
Saadia Faruqi
99 books515 followersSaadia Faruqi is a Pakistani American author, essayist and interfaith activist. She writes the children’s early reader series “Yasmin” published by Capstone and other books for children, including middle grade novels “A Place At The Table” (HMH/Clarion 2020) co-written with Laura Shovan, and “A Thousand Questions” (Harper Collins 2020). She has also written “Brick Walls: Tales of Hope & Courage from Pakistan” a short story collection for adults and teens. Saadia is editor-in-chief of Blue Minaret, a magazine for Muslim art, poetry and prose, and was featured in Oprah Magazine in 2017 as a woman making a difference in her community. She resides in Houston, TX with her husband and children.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 16, 2021
Another enjoyable and well done book about Yasmin!
February 4, 2020
Writing assignments are a classroom staple and Ms. Alex asks the class to write an essay with the topic “My Hero.” Unsurprising, classmates announce famous people as their subjects: Muhammed Ali (because they share a name); Rosa Parks (because she is inspiring). Even Yasmin’s mother, when helping her research people & ideas, pulls up a list of famous people. But none of those people were her hero.
As Yasmin discovers an essay to be harder to write than she’d anticipated, her mother is cooking dinner, taking calls, finding lost pajamas, and soothing her after a nightmare. It isn’t until Mama “saves [her] from an empty stomach,” that Yasmin realizes who her hero is. Ms. Alex agrees: “Heroes don’t have to be famous people. Sometimes they are ones closest to us.”
Three short chapters long, large font, good spacing, and appealing illustrations make these an obvious choice for beginner readers, but the story (as with all Yasmin stories) is what will be the true draw for the reader and caregiver. Faruqi crafts an engaging protagonist and surrounds her with enjoyable characters. Faruqi never oversimplifies nor overly complicates her narratives. The pacing is wonderful, moments built and timed beautifully. Faruqi places the mother so naturally into the story and its progression; she’ll become more and more the focus, moving from the story's and Yasmin’s periphery until she comes bursting through the lunchroom door.
Aly is a great storytelling partner in illustrating some really marvelous moments: Yasmin at the table, despairing (hilarious); Mama holding her; that lunchroom scene; a caped Mama…
It may be a subtle point, but I enjoyed how different and acceptable the first drafts were. Ali drew a picture, Emma listed facts. There are different approaches to writing essays and Ms. Alex (who is always awesome) and Faruqi (who is also awesome) celebrate that.
Yasmin is a great series to share with a young reader. The Writer may have even more delightful results beyond an engaging character and narrative: maybe the young Reader will want to also be a Writer and write about the heroes closest to them? Not that we need more selfish reasons to read Yasmin stories with our young ones, Faruqi and Aly are a joy.
As Yasmin discovers an essay to be harder to write than she’d anticipated, her mother is cooking dinner, taking calls, finding lost pajamas, and soothing her after a nightmare. It isn’t until Mama “saves [her] from an empty stomach,” that Yasmin realizes who her hero is. Ms. Alex agrees: “Heroes don’t have to be famous people. Sometimes they are ones closest to us.”
Three short chapters long, large font, good spacing, and appealing illustrations make these an obvious choice for beginner readers, but the story (as with all Yasmin stories) is what will be the true draw for the reader and caregiver. Faruqi crafts an engaging protagonist and surrounds her with enjoyable characters. Faruqi never oversimplifies nor overly complicates her narratives. The pacing is wonderful, moments built and timed beautifully. Faruqi places the mother so naturally into the story and its progression; she’ll become more and more the focus, moving from the story's and Yasmin’s periphery until she comes bursting through the lunchroom door.
Aly is a great storytelling partner in illustrating some really marvelous moments: Yasmin at the table, despairing (hilarious); Mama holding her; that lunchroom scene; a caped Mama…
It may be a subtle point, but I enjoyed how different and acceptable the first drafts were. Ali drew a picture, Emma listed facts. There are different approaches to writing essays and Ms. Alex (who is always awesome) and Faruqi (who is also awesome) celebrate that.
Yasmin is a great series to share with a young reader. The Writer may have even more delightful results beyond an engaging character and narrative: maybe the young Reader will want to also be a Writer and write about the heroes closest to them? Not that we need more selfish reasons to read Yasmin stories with our young ones, Faruqi and Aly are a joy.
January 23, 2024
I denne serien finnes det mange fler. Men jeg tok de to som virket artige for min del. Likte de skikkelig godt. Språket er enkelt for selvstendige lesere i tidlig engelsk-løp. Det er så mange bøker at nesten alle kan finne noen som fenger. Baksidene handler om flere tips for å bygge ut boka: fakta om land, språk og noe en kan lage. Passer fint i alle skolebibliotek.
August 4, 2020
So cute! I love how these stories show such a warm and caring family. I also loved when Ms.Alex says “heroes don’t have to be famous people. Sometimes they are the ones closer to us.”
(Story 3 in You Can Do It, Yasmin)
(Story 3 in You Can Do It, Yasmin)
March 13, 2020
Happy story with a sprinkling of Urdu.
November 4, 2020
What an amazing book series! Great for all readers!
February 6, 2022
It's an amazing book and gives us information that famous people are not the only ones who are superheroes they can also be the ones who are closest to you!
Maryam
4th grade
Maryam
4th grade
April 5, 2023
As a mom, this one was so sweet! I loved this!
May 20, 2024
3.5 stars
My mom is my hero too.
My mom is my hero too.
August 13, 2024
It... was ..THE BEST! It's SOOO good! You should read it!
January 11, 2023
This was my 8 yr old sister library book and I read it, i like it lol I recommend
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews