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Was super excited to read this, especially with the companion novel coming out, but unfortunately Saints and Misfits is only available in a file that's not readable on Kindle or any other epub reader so I wasn't able to read it :-(
However, based on what I've heard, it would definitely be worth checking out and I will definitely add it to my tbr future list.

Though my reading device can display some PDF's without problem, the file for 'Saints and Misfits' will not load. I am rather sad that I am unable to access this book but look forward to reading it from my library or a future purchase.

I am practicing Muslim. But unlike Janna, I did not grow up in a Muslim household. I converted when I was 23. But this is not to say that I didn't feel a connection with her. From a religious point of view, I did because of some of things we as Muslims should be doing and what Janna was doing. But I guess what I didn't like about the book, what I struggled with was the voice and how the story moved along. I understood where the author was going in regards to the attempted rape, adding the religious references and showing this girl grow up a bit faster than she should. I get all of that. But the build up was incredibly slow that I struggled to see the point of the story. I didn't know if it was to make people aware of what a young girl who believes and openly practices her faith can go through or if it was to bring awareness to rape and family conflict. This isn't a bad book but it wasn't for me. I struggled with the voice, the lack of real personality from Janna and clarification in regards to direction. Even when I got to the end, I was just like.. that's it. Overall, I'm not sure if I would recommend this read.

This was so good! It was so insightful and interesting. The characters were very real - flawed, but you still understood them. I’m also emotional because of the ending.

I think there were several important things targeted in this book, and it shone a light on a really underrepresented marginalized group in fiction. There were a lot of Muslims teens who were victims of sexual assault who connected with the book. However for me, I did not find it memorable, and I did have some issues with some anti-ace and anti-aro sentences.

(4.5 stars)

This book has definitely been on my TBR for quite some time. I’ve many great things about it and it definitely didn’t disappoint.

So, we have Janna. She is super into her religion of being Muslim. She wears a hijab and covers herself with black layers most of the time. It doesn’t help much when she has a crush on someone who isn’t Muslim. Janna doesn’t know for sure the set in stone rules, but they seem to be set in stone for her. Her life takes an unexpected, bumpy turn when she is sexually assaulted by her friend’s Muslim and well-respected brother.

Details

Each chapter is labeled as “misfit”, “saint”, “monster” or sometimes multiple labels of each. These are the people in her life and situations that arise with said people. Obviously, the monster is meant to be the “well respected” brother. Her misfits seem to be the so-called friends or family members that do odd things or things that Janna doesn’t necessarily agree with. Of course, saint refers to the kind of person or people that bring a bit of light in Janna’s life at a certain moment. It’s all in Janna’s POV and the details are really insightful and educational. There is a lot of emotion, but not so much where it’s like a weight on your shoulders. It’s deep, though.

Janna

I just want to talk about Janna in my review because she is the main focus. This is her story. Her story about trying to face her “monster”. I’ve never heard of a story (unless it’s on TV) where a woman of serious religion like this is sexually assaulted. I’m not blind to the fact that anybody can be victimized, but it was fascinating to read this story with a new perspective. Janna is such a strong girl and I actually loved that she kept true to her religion. She didn’t change herself for a boy, for family, etc. All the way to the end, she kept her style and her heart close. Sometimes, the girl in the story changes who she is. Janna doesn’t. I admired that the most about her. She goes through a lot here and definitely has some crappy friends that should just stay away from her. She’s better off, though. The ending leaves it open, but resolved in a way. It leaves it open to Janna’s growth and I have a feeling that growth will be a big one.

The Bottom Line

I don’t know why I waited so long to read this book. It was so good and touched my reader’s heart in a big way. Like I said, anyone can be a victim of sexual assault, God forbid. It’s important to remember that NO MEANS NO. If you have been a victim before, speak up. Don’t keep it hidden inside of you. Don’t let the monster win. Be Janna.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for the opportunity to read and review Saints and misfits by S.K. Ali. Janna lives in a Muslim home with her mother and brother. Her dad is remarried and has young children with his new wife. The story opens with Janna at the beach with her dad's family. She needed to get away from her home and her friend's cousin who tried raping her. Janna calls him Monster. It seems that she has told no one. The story backtracks weeks before and shows Janna and her school, home and community life. Janna is frustrated that everyone thinks Faroq, Monster, is a wonderful and good person. She finally confides in someone and she takes matters into her own hands. Then it all gets thrown back in her face. Relatable characters and events make this book a part of reality. 4 stars for a story about society’s expectations and the complications that go with them.

➜I do feel stupid not having read all the literature discussed in Saints & Misfits and feel like I’m def missing out because of it. I feel Janna’s pain about Caliban and Miranda. Having to read and dissect work like that while trying to cope? God, it sucks. I went through it with Clockwork Orange. UGH. Schools and teachers, why you ban stuff like Part Time Diary of a Full Time Indian, but insist on teaching rapist and racist text like it’s going to make us better people? Ugh. 
➜That is the only issue I have with Saints & Misfits though. 

➜It handles sexual assault from Janna’s perspective well. There is victim shaming though, with someone calling people who don’t speak out weak. It fuels Janna, but it can easily tip someone over the other way, so please be careful, my fellow survivors! 

 

➜Given her uncle the imam’s advice on dating non-Muslims (which is excellent btw), I’m surprised it went the way it did. Of course, I am disappointed in His reaction to The Monster, so maybe it’s for the best. It’s too bad he didn’t get a chance to step up and call him out. 

➜I really appreciate having a Monster with good standing in the community, which sounds wierd as hell, but is a necessary addition to YA literature about surviving rape. 

 

➜There’s plenty of friend and family drama as well. The divorce is realistic and interesting. That they struggle while the father doesn’t and worries about his child support is interesting. It’s easy to demonize one and lionize the other, but it struck and interesting balance between the two that see-sawed along the way. 

➜Enriched math class with Soon-lee is an amazing addition. I lived for the next class and to find out more about them. 

➜Tats is an alright friend, like Farooq in a lot of ways, just on different ends of the spectrum. I went back and forth on both of them, though there’s clearly a better one at the end. 

➜The bits with Sandra, Facebook, and bullying are great. I’m so proud of Janna! 

➜Saint Sarah was annoying to deal with in all her perfection for a lot of the book. She shows up towards the end in an endearing way, but I still have trouble with her seeming like a holy hypocrite. 

➜Nuah is just a dorky doll that I want to hug <3 ( I would respect his beliefs and wouldn’t though. I’m just expressing my desire to crush and squee him because he is so amazingly adorable. ) 

➜Love Sausan and the Niqabi Ninjas, except for the victim blaming rants of course. It’s easier for some people to be angry and do something, especially when they haven’t been personally victimized like Janna. 
 
➜I like the ending, but it leaves me a bit unsettled, because "What happens next?!?" question. I know what I hope would happen, but reality doesn't often go that way...It's positive and hopeful, but I'd like definitive epilogue of justice servied and Janna thriving.

Favorite Quotes:::
❝This is going to sounds strange, but I found out, through careful study, that good-looking guys always have the right foreheads. ❞

❝So my hair has succumbed to the lack of maintenance that exists when the world doesn’t judge you buy it. ❞

❝Forget bird scat I had other scat to look into. The bull kind. ❞

I enjoyed this one and thought it was great to have a Hijabi teen as the main character.

Saints and Misfits is a gem of a story about a Muslim hijabi teen, Janna, who’s trying to navigate the confusing feelings of adolescence and deal with her traumatic experience of sexual assault by a supposedly upstanding member of her community. Her voice is refreshingly honest, snarky, and down-to-earth. I loved the different relationships explored in the story, from her family drama, to her friendships with people at school and at the Islamic Center, to her crush on Jeremy, to her mentor-mentee relationship with her imam. The supporting characters really rounded out the story, giving it depth and breadth. The topic of sexual assault was explored with sensitivity and grace, and I found it to be an empowering story for survivors and an honest commentary on how a community may fail its members.

S.K. Ali's debut novel, Saints and Misfits, is a welcoming addition to the growing and much needed collection of books written about and written by Muslim authors. In a smartly written novel Ali has been able to tap into universal themes and portray the various representation of faith and Muslim representation without being didactic.
Janna Yusuf is an extremely smart Indian Arab American Muslim teen who, like all teens, is looking for a place to belong. She is caught between her Muslim faith and the parts of her life that clash with it. Janna identifies herself as a misfit and does not fit into the cookie cutter mold of a "saintly" Muslim teen. Her parents are divorced, a culture faux pas that many people do not discuss. While a practicing Muslim herself, her father is a secular business man who has since remarried and sends out motivational quotes in his newsletter. Her love life is complicated considering she has a crush on a non-Muslim boy named Jeremy who she can not date because of her religion though her crush might not be unrequited, but above all Janna's biggest obstacle is facing the monster: a "pious" boy from a respectable family and from her mosque who attempts to sexually assault her during a party.
The different categories of people that Janna identifies throughout the story, with the exception of the monster, shift and change as Janna's preconceptions are constantly challenged. Janna's internal push and pull observations gives readers unfamiliar with Islam a deep understanding of Muslim practices, the wide range of how people observe or don't observe Islam as well as the representation of women who wear the hijab without limiting or changing the focus of the story. Teens will easily look past their superficial differences with Janna and instead will connect with her not fitting in, dealing with frustrations of rape culture, the difficulty of trusting others and truly connecting with others, and most of all finding the courage to speak out.
Janna is a keen observer and all of her thoughts on the world and those around her are filtered through her lens. I loved the use of Janna's hobby of a photographer as a running conceit in the story. I also greatly appreciated that the author does not use stereotypes in her book but rather exposes not only their flaws, but also the flaws of the Muslim culture. Janna creates a strong support system with both Muslim and non-Muslim friends. I also adored her friendship with an elderly Indian man who shows her own shortcomings and the advice column that her uncle and imam has for her mosque that gives the reader a peek into what's like to be a Muslim teen. Saints and Misfits is another solid book published by Salaam Reads that illustrates a girl's attempt to find her place in a complicated world.

TW: attempted rape/sexual assault, however it’s not graphic/explicit

In my hearts of hearts, I truly believe that this book needed to be released to make an impact on this world. Saints and Misfits is an ownvoices novel featuring an Arab Indian-American hijabi wearing teen who attends public high school and has many personal problems. It is one of the most important books to be released in 2017, right up there along with The Hate U Give.

This book deals with ordinary things like friendship, death, first love, family relationships, etc. I really connected and related to Janna, who was trying to navigate the daily life of a teen with all the joys and sorrows that comes along with that. When an author can make you feel for a character that deeply, you know it’s a winner.

There are many small moments in this book that really opened the doorway into me understanding Janna’s culture, her history with her family (who has divorced parents), her relationship with the wise old grandpa down the hallway. The author manages to weave in little snippets like these that further enhance and build on the characterization.

My only problem was the plot really seemed to drag on for a long time, which kind of got me to walk away from the book and come back to it. I generally prefer a balanced factors of plot and characters, and this one leaned on an extremely monotonous plot in my opinion, however I would still highly recommend for everyone to read this book!

**Thank you very much to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC copy of this book in exchange of my honest opinion.**

I requested SAINTS AND MISFITS by S. K. Ali because I think building a collection that includes diverse characters is very important. And I honestly can see where SAINTS AND MISFITS could appeal to students who already identify with characters like those featured in this YA novel. However, for others who are less familiar I feel like it might simply reinforce stereotypes, especially about treatment of women and girls, unless they are willing to get beyond the first section where the Monster (Farooq) attempts to rape Janna (a self-described misfit). Still, the characters felt a bit immature and my reaction was less positive than other reviews.

Maybe it is because I recently also read DARING TO DRIVE (non-fiction about women's rights in Saudi Arabia) and SALT HOUSES (novel about multiple generations of a Palestinian family) two books which dealt with cultural expectations and women's roles in the Middle East. What made those books more appealing? Perhaps it was more comfortable to look at these critical issues through a lens involving some geographic distance? Or maybe they just allowed for a wider life experience beyond high school angst?

Ali's SAINTS AND MISFITS received starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus, and School Library Journal so I decided to post it here, particularly because it does deal with standing up to bullies. I also am including a review of another recent YA novel, WHEN DIMPLE MET RISHI, with characters whose heritage is tied to the Indian subcontinent. In each case, perhaps our students will see that finding oneself involves more than just accepting community and parental expectations, no matter what background is involved.

[Continues with comments about WHEN DIMPLE MET RISHI]
Links in live post: http://treviansbookit.blogspot.com/2017/06/daring-to-drive-by-manal-al-sharif.html and
http://treviansbookit.blogspot.com/2017/05/salt-houses-by-hala-alyan.html

Janna Yusuf is not sure she fits in anywhere. As an Arab Indian-American hijabi teenager she definitely stands out at school. And her divorced parents, Flannery O'Connor obsession, and crush on a non-Muslim friend from school, make her wonder about her place in her tight-knit Muslim community as well. One thing she does know is that her best friend's cousin is a monster masquerading as a saint, but will she have the courage to say something? Will anyone believe her when he seems so perfect on the outside?

I loved this debut from S.K. Ali. Saints and Misfits is a classic coming-of-age story. Anyone can relate to Janna's tale because her struggles over who she is and who she wants to be are a universal part of growing up. At the same time, I really enjoyed reading a story set within a Muslim community. S.K. Ali so effortlessly brings the reader into Janna's world. The contemporary YA scene is branching out more and more with diverse characters and viewpoints, and this story is such a lovely addition to that direction and an important one as well. I'm always happy when I find a book that treats faith and faith communities with realism and respect.

Janna's story works so well because she is so honestly herself.She's a fantastic narrator with a strong voice and a distinct personality. Saints and Misfits is populated with side characters who the reader can't help but love. And I really enjoyed watching Janna reassess her initial impressions of many of them.

Also, I absolutely love the cover of this book. The ombre and the script are gorgeous, and I am so happy that they put a hijabi teen on the cover.

Janna, the main character in Saints an Misfits, by S.K. Ali, is an American girl that many can identify with. She has friends, is a good student, and has crushes on seemingly unattainable boys. She is also being harassed by a boy many see as a "saint". This could be the plot of any YA book out right now. What makes this book different from others is that Janna is a Muslim teen who is active in her religious community. She also wears an hijab.

I love this book. It shows a positive representation of a Muslim teen dealing with issues that can happen with any teenager.

What I Liked:
Living The Faith:
There are very few YA books that show any teens who have active religious lives. Yet, I had many friends growing up who were very involved in their church. They went to youth groups, church services, camps, and had many friends from among the same religion.

I really liked the author's depiction of all the ways that Janna lived her faith. As the author explained parts of Islam (and why Janna did certain things), I felt I learned a lot about this community. It also showed how important Islam was to Janna. Too often, religion is shown as oppressive, or is absent altogether. This is a huge part of many teen's lives and deserves to be depicted in YA books.

Characters:
Janna is a teen who is dealing with her parents divorce, and the inequity of a dad who has much, but a mom who is struggling. She is often angry at her parents and wishes for the idyllic life they had before the divorce.

She is also figuring out how to be a modern teen but also be true to her values as a Muslim. Can/should she go out with non-Muslim boys? Why is wearing an Hijab important to her? And can she understand another Muslim girl's desire to wear a Niqab (a garment that completely covers the body, leaving only an open space for eyes)?

Janna is also struggling with harassment from a boy in her religious community. As he is someone everyone believes to be a pious young man, will anyone believe her accusation?

There are other characters that Janna, herself, sees only as stereotypes, but are later revealed to be much more complex. There's much more to "saint" Sarah than someone who is perfect. And another girl, Sausun, has a very good reason for the chip on her shoulder. But it takes a while for Janna to see past her own preconceptions.

Central Problem:
It may seem strange for me to say I "liked" this, but the topic of dealing with harassment is very important. Although Janna knows that the boy is at fault, she has a hard time standing up for herself. Not getting what he wants, the boy knows just what to do to shame her in their religious community. Sadly, this happens to girls at high schools all the time. A boy gets rebuffed by a girl and retaliates by starting rumors about her.

What I Was Mixed About:
I am being deliberately vague, but I think the resolution of the book was not as complex as it should have been. I would love to say more, but doing so would give away the ending. This is a very small quibble.

S.K. Ali’s debut novel Saints and Misfits is a beautifully written coming of age book about family, friendship, love, religious faith, and so much more. It’s also a book that focuses on the importance of not judging people, of not making assumptions about people you don’t even know based on how they look or how they’re dressed, or maybe even how religious or not religious they may seem.  Saints and Misfits tackles all of these important themes and allows us to explore them through the eyes of a hijabi teen, Janna Yusuf, as she navigates her way through life in her high school, at home, and in her Muslim community.

For the most part, Janna’s life is just like many other teens.  Her parents are divorced and Janna shares an apartment with her mother and her older brother, Muhammad.  Janna, a sophomore in high school, is fairly popular at school, works hard to get good grades, and is also starting to become interested in boys. Outside of school, Janna keeps herself busy with a part-time job taking care of her elderly neighbor Mr. Ram and also by pitching in as a photographer and website maintainer at the mosque where her uncle serves as Imam.

Janna is also a young woman with two very big secrets that she is trying to keep hidden from her loved ones and her community: 1) that she is attracted to Jeremy, a cute non-Muslim boy from school and she’s afraid that her family will not approve, and 2) that while attending a party at her friend Fizz’s house, Janna is nearly raped by Fizz’s cousin, Farooq.  Janna is traumatized and ashamed about what happened with Farooq but is afraid to tell anyone because Farooq is a very well- respected member of their close-knit Muslim community.  She doesn’t think anyone will believe her.  Janna’s experience is made all the more traumatic by the fact that Farooq seems to turn up nearly everywhere she goes, lurking in the background, almost as if he’s stalking her.  Janna’s two secrets drive much of the book’s storyline as she must decide what to do about each of them.  Will she choose to pursue her attraction to Jeremy and perhaps have to deal with the disapproval of her loved ones?  And will she find her voice and speak out against Farooq, to let her community know that he’s not a man to be revered and respected, but instead, he’s really a monster?



LIKES

There’s so much to love about Saints and Misfits, but I’d have to say my favorite part is the wonderful cast of characters.

Janna.  I adored everything about Janna.  She’s super smart, hilarious, a little bit snarky, and just an all-around likeable character, probably one of the most likeable characters I’ve read so far this year.  As if all of that wasn’t cool enough, Janna is also a Flannery O’Connor loving book nerd! If I had gone to school with Janna, I totally would have wanted to be friends with her.  I also found her voice to be authentic and I loved seeing the events of the story unfold from her perspective.  Her journey to find herself and to ultimately decide what kind of person she wants to be is such a compelling one.

Muhammad.  Janna’s older brother Muhammad is a great character too. He’s a typical annoying older brother at times, but he’s also just an all around good guy.  He’s protective of both his mother and his little sister, and he’s also adorably head over heels in love with his girlfriend, who Janna has dubbed “Saint Sarah” because the girl appears to be perfect in nearly every way.  (Janna learns that she’s wrong to make such a judgment about Sarah—that Sarah is human and has a past just like everyone else -- but I’ll leave the details about that for you to discover on your own).

Sausun.  After Janna, Sausun is probably my next favorite character.  I loved Sausun because she comes across as kind of a badass. She’s tough, not easy to impress, and she wears a niqab accessorized by Doc Martens.  She also hosts a hilarious YouTube show called Niqabi Ninjas, which she says she does to “lighten things up” so that people won’t be afraid of her and of other Niqabi (girls who cover their faces, in contrast to hijabis like Janna who just cover their hair).  What I loved most about Sausun though was how she steps up and gives Janna the metaphorical kick in the pants that she needs to try to stand up to Farooq.

Nuah.  Nuah is such a loveable character. I loved this guy so much.  Janna meets him at the senior center where she takes her neighbor, Mr. Ram, every week.  Where Farooq’s presence suffocates and overwhelms Janna, Nuah’s presence puts her at ease and whether she realizes it or not, she’s more herself around Nuah than she is around any another male we see her with in the story.  Nuah is super sweet, always sees the bright side of things, and loves to tell jokes and be silly.  He’s a big hit with all of the seniors at the center, and he also clearly likes Janna even though she doesn’t seem to realize it. As we learn during the course of the story, Nuah also is truly devout as opposed to the fake Farooq, who may have memorized the entire Quran but clearly has no interest in what it actually means.

There are also tons of really likeable secondary characters as well, like Janna’s uncle, who runs an advice column as part of his duties for the mosque.  He sends his answers to Janna so that she can edit/proofread them, so we get to see them as well.  He always has such warm and witty responses to the questions that are asked of him. You can’t help but chuckle when reading them.

In addition to the fabulous cast of characters, I also loved the realistic representation of the Muslim community.  Janna’s community is close-knit and supportive, with everyone pitching in and helping wherever they can.  I loved the positive depiction, which is so important these days when there are those who constantly try to demonize Muslims.  Ali does a wonderful job of illustrating that the Muslim community is just like almost every community out there, and she does it in a realistic way.  Yes, the community is positive overall and filled with caring people, but also like any other community out there, it has its issues as well, in this case the issue being Farooq.

Diversity.  Saints and Misfits is overflowing with diversity in the most wonderful way.  As I’ve already mentioned, the novel is set in a Muslim community and most of the main characters are Muslim, with both Hijabis and Niqabis being represented.  On a side note, while I’m thinking about the different types of coverings that can be worn, one of the things I really loved about the book was how Ali illustrates that just like with any other religion, different people interpret the Quran in different ways and thus their practice of the religion is very individualized. Just like not all Christians are the same, not all Muslims are the same either.

But the diversity doesn’t end there.  In addition to being Muslim, Janna is also half-Egyptian and half-Indian. Mr. Ram, the neighbor Janna cares for, is Hindu, and Ms. Kolbinsky, another elderly neighbor (who happens to have a crush on Mr. Ram!) is newly arrived from Poland.



DISLIKES

That it’s over?  Seriously. I adored Janna and her friends so much and would definitely be up for reading more about them, especially some of the characters that we just barely scratched the surface on. I’d totally be up for a standalone book on Sausun, Nuah, or even Janna’s brother Muhammad.



FINAL THOUGHTS

Saints and Misfits is an important novel because of the themes it explores and because of its realistic depiction of a Muslim community.  What makes this book even more special though is that it’s not just an important read, it’s a beautifully written and engaging read as well, one of my favorites of the year so far.

I read an article in Entertainment Weekly this week about books that should be made into TV shows and Saints and Misfits was one of the books on the list.  I actually really hope it happens because I think it with such a diverse and vibrant cast of characters, it would make for a very entertaining show.



RATING:  5 STARS

Thanks so much to S.K. Ali, Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview this book.

4.5/5 Stars

Janna knows all to well that life as a teenager is a difficult maze to navigate. What with her brother moving back home, divorced parents, and crushes she can't quite explain. Compounding this is an incident Janna cannot bring herself to talk about. Thus begins a wonderfully accessible and eye opening story about faith, family, and everyday life from S.K. Ali.

Saints and Misfits provides the reader with an honest, endearing voice through Janna, a biracial Muslim teen who wears hijab by choice. She's funny and sincere yet struggling with the aftermath of an attempted rape. Janna's also just trying to figure out how faith and life intertwine, learning every step of the way. Her thought process is so compelling and makes it easy to see through her eyes.

Adding to her excitement and woes are a formidable group of family and friends. Muhammad, Janna's brother so sweet and laid back, not to mention ridiculously cute when wooing Sarah. Then there's Tatyanna, a best friend for the ages, always having Janna's back. Sausan, was a surprise for me, brisk and stand-offish but super fierce, and goofy and kind Nuah who is always observing. Plus old Mr. Ram offering insight and understanding along the way.

One of the most engaging aspects of the book though was how it highlighted the Muslim community and Islam itself. Being an #ownvoices title, I appreciated the authenticity it delivered with direct quotes from the Quran and Jana's uncle answering questions on how the Prophet's words apply to modern life.  As I do not identify as Muslim, I'm going to link to Leenah from The Tales of Two Readers review HERE for a more in depth discussion on the representation within the narrative.

Overall I really adored S.K. Ali's Saints and Misfits. From a myriad of complex characters to a plot that was so earnest and relatable, Janna's story truly has it all. It's honest, not glossing over the bad, and it invokes real emotion at every page. And thank goodness for it being #ownvoices. I will absolutely be recommending this to everyone and cannot wait to see it on my library's shelf.

Saints and Misfits is described in the Goodreads blurb as a Muslim "My So Called Life." I'm old enough to remember that 90s show, and I see the parallels, as this is a book about a smart, observant young girl navigating the ups and downs of teenage life.

Janna is the daughter of divorced parents and the niece of an imam. She takes photos at mosque events for her uncle and helps edit his advice column. She has a part time job wheeling around a 90+ year-old senior citizen with whom she discusses race and representation in Shakespeare. Her brother is in love with the mosque study leader. And for most of the book she's afraid of someone in her community and angry that he's managed to fool everyone about his true nature.

I loved the themes of this book. One major one was what makes a good/moral person, which is a question Janna grapples with. The level of religious observance in her family and friend circle varies quite a bit, and she's trying to see where she fits in. There's also one person, lauded in her religious community, who she doesn't think isn't a good or moral person at all.

Really enjoyed this - check it out if you're looking for a sometimes funny, sometimes moving coming-of-age story!

Saints and Misfits is a feminist book about a Muslim teen struggling with identity. While I enjoyed the concept and the main character, I found the book’s pacing to be a bit slow. This is an important read, however, and one of very few Muslim YA books that I have seen.

This book is all about the life of a Muslim teen. Janna figures out her own identity while dealing with feelings that slightly go against her religion. She also deals with the recovery process of attempted rape and tries to get the other members of her community to believe that the man is not the saint that they all believe him to be. This is a powerful feminist story that does a great job of explaining Islam in a simple way.

I enjoyed Janna’s character. She is a photographer and a book nerd and is easy to relate to. She is also so sweet and takes care of an old man in her spare time. What I also enjoyed about Janna’s character is the fact that she is so dedicated to her faith. She is sure to follow all the rules to protect both her image and the reputation of her community. Janna’s voice is just so clever and sarcastic, which I love to see in a book.

My main issue with the book is the pacing. The book just seemed to drag on, and I was having trouble focusing on it. I also had no idea that sexual assault would appear in the story, so this is just a heads up to anyone who could be triggered by that. As well, Janna’s family is oblivious to all the hints that Janna was assaulted and the way she acts around her attacker. I didn’t find this very realistic, and I feel like at least one of her friends would have noticed the change in behaviour.

Saints and Misfits is the story of a Muslim teen finding her way through life. I enjoyed the main character and her generous personality, but found the book’s pacing to be too slow for my liking. I would still recommend this book, however, because it tackles some important topics and has some powerful messages.