Beautifully written, this book gives a good insight into life as an immigrant. It covers the topics of complicated family dynamics, someone growing up and trying to find her path in the world as an American Palestinian Muslim woman.
Overall, this is a very interesting book and I would definitely recommend it.

Complicated dynamics between family members and the journey to find one's identity centre itself around this novel which begins with an attack at an all girls Muslim school.

While the topics covered are heavy, it is quite an easy and quick read. It makes for a great book club book as there is a lot to discuss and unpack.

Beautifully written, raw and complex. This book really gets to you and shines light on bias, prejudice, and what it's like to be an immigrant.
I liked the complicated family relationships, and the central topic of the heroine trying to find her path in the world, juggling identities and trying to define who she is and where she's headed, as an American Palestinian Muslim woman.
The parts about finding faith were less fascinating to me but that's solely a personal preference. I don't as a rule enjoy the topic of religion in media but it definitely was an integral part of her story and the emphasis on it made complete sense.
Overall, this is a book well worth picking up and would definitely recommend it.

Unfortunately this book wasn’t for me. I persevered until about 30% but then I gave up on it.
I am sure other people will enjoy it but I was bored.

The Beauty of Your Face grippingly explores Hijab wearing, from the way it provides a sense of strength and comfort for the wearer, and the unfortunate stereotypes and prejudice forced upon it - exploring attitudes both pre and post 9/11. This was very well written and well paced, providing a juxtaposition between the protagonists experience in the past and present.

I failed to connect with this book. I just couldn't get into it, the pace was off and the writing style didnt work for me. DNF so won't be reviewing anywhere else

This was an enjoyable read and I would recommend it. thanks for letting me have an advance copy. I'm new to this author.

A striking and beautiful novel that plots the life of a Palestinian-American headteacher. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, a personal journey through family, religion and finding your place in a world that often views you as an outsider

🇵🇸 BOOK REVIEW 🇵🇸

Synopsis: Afaf Rahman, the daughter of Palestinian immigrants, is the principal of Nurrideen School for Girls, a Muslim school in the Chicago suburbs. One morning, a shooter―radicalized by the online alt-right―attacks the school.
As Afaf listens to his terrifying progress, we are swept back through her memories: the bigotry she faced as a child, her mother’s dreams of returning to Palestine, and the devastating disappearance of her older sister that tore her family apart. Still, there is the sweetness of the music from her father’s oud, and the hope and community Afaf finally finds in Islam.

Review: You know when sometimes you read a book so incredibly poignant and empathetic that it hits you in the heart and stays there forever? This is one of those books. Sahar Mustafah has the incredible talent of putting the reader in Afaf’s shoes, through every stage of her life. Although we often hear about the blatant racism experienced by Muslims, this story gives you a first hand account of what it is like to be on the receiving side of hurtful comments, including those that aren’t intended to be insensitive. My heart absolutely breaks for Afaf and all she has been through in her life, but what an incredible story of determination and perseverance. This book is special, and one that will resonate with me for a very long time. This book is now on my list of top 9 reads of 2021, and my permanent list of favourite books of all time. I highly recommend that each and every person read this book. I promise that it will leave you moved, educated and hungry (the food descriptions are absolutely incredible 🤤). Thank you @saharmustafahwriter for bringing this book into my life.

My sincerest thanks to @netgalley @legendpress.rs and the author for a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

5/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[content warning: school shooting, alcohol addiction, suicide, mental illness, loss of a parent, missing child, racism]

#bookreview #bookstagram #freepalestine #thebeautyofyourface #fivestarreads #bookaesthetic #bookaddict #booklover #succulents #plantsofinstagram #readingcommunity #fiction #muslimauthors #bookblog #bookrecommendations

it’s been a few weeks since I’ve read this book and it left such an impression on me, that I had no idea how to write this review. I still don’t think anything I can say will do this book justice, but I’ll try my best because it deserves all the praise and more.

this book is a very layered and complex narrative, dealing with many different themes in such a beautiful and gracious way. it shows all the nuances of living as a Muslim in post 9/11 America, as well as problems Muslim communities face within themselves without selling out on either of them. it’s also a story of tragedy, about a grieving family with toxic dynamics, mental health, displacement from Palestine, being a first generation immigrant, being a child in a family overshadowed by the disappearance of the favorite older child. but above all, it’s a story of love, empathy and finding peace in a found family and community after dealing with such tragedies.

most importantly, this book shows Muslim representation done right. the characters are not perfect Muslims at all and that’s the beauty of it. Mustafah managed to capture all of the complexities of Muslim lives and identities without compromising on the reality of them and without watering down the ‘Muslimness’ if you will.

Mustafah has managed to pack so many important conversations in a single book and delivered them with such beauty and grace. it’s a beautiful and harrowing book, stunningly written, and the type of story which you can read over and over again because you will discover something new each time. it’s definitely one of my new favorite books and I will come back to it many, many times in the future. I can highly recommend this book to absolutely everyone.

trigger warnings for school shootings, racism, islamophobia, mental illness, disappearance of a child, death of a family member and suicide attempts.

Afaf, the child of immigrant parents, is the principal of a Muslim school in the suburbs of Chicago and as we are taken along a day in her life, we realize how difficult it must be for her to sustain the school in the face of all the hate being directed the school's way. A shooter makes his way into the school one morning and attacks it. And as Afaf listens in terror, trying to think of ways to stop this, her life comes flashing and we are shown glimpses into the things that shaped her into who she now is while not diminishing her Muslim culture, something that I really liked.

This is a book that I was super excited about and it did hold up my excitement to a certain level. The writing is beautiful, the range of topics talked about‌ in here, including and not limited to racism, xenophobia, the internal workings of a Muslim family, the longing for home, the experience of being an immigrant in a country famous for being welcoming and unwelcoming in the same breath - it all comes to a head in this book.

It's powerful voice is a must read. I wish I had read this earlier, but better late than never learning more about different cultures and perspectives.

This book was incredible. The author weaved through the past and present storylines seamlessly. I was surprised to learn this was a debut noel. With females empowering other females, Afaf, the main character, was able to gain a peer group that she didn't have, and instead, was less lost as a teenager, which I found provided hope for Afaf. Throughout her story, it was telling that she endured so much amidst her own family trauma/dynamic, racism, the shooter, and the aftermath. With such strong character development and how real this story is, I felt so much compassion and sadness regarding Afaf and her life. It was difficult to read the shooter's story, as it's so terrifying that this occurs in America (and other countries) today. Afaf's courage was admirable and it shined throughout the story. This book is a must read! There are so many themes in this book that it adds so much depth to this novel. I will be following the author's next novel release date, as it will be an automatic book in my TBR pile.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Sahar Mustafah for an ARC Copy, and providing the opportunity to read this poignant novel for an honest review.

Failed to connect with this book. The introduction of the shooter's POV killed it for me - were we supposed to be understanding this killer, and even empathize with him? This felt too dark for me, and Afaf's life was also way too depressing and with nothing uplifting at any point. Even her finding faith was not uplifting - just like something that happened. And that's also the thing about this - things just 'happen'... Left me with a huge disconnect for this story and I thus could not appreciate it

This was a heartbreaking story. My heart was no prepared to be destroyed so fully and deeply. Sahar Mustafeh writes such a poignant and heartbreaking story of a Muslim woman in Palestine. The story is handled delicately with such emotional depth that it is impossible not to feel your heart break.

This book wasn`t for me, i weren`t interestet in the characters or the story. I liked the frontal page, but not much more.

The Beauty of Your Face By Sahar Mustafah
Rating 4 / 5 Stars
Publication Date - 8/3/2020

** Thank you to Netgalley, Legend Press, and of course, Sahar Mustafah, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start out by saying, I adored this book. I’ve been trying to read as many books from different authors of different lands and this was a perfect addition to that list. This is number two of Palestinian authorship - following A Woman Is No Man. As much as I didn’t want to compare the two books, I did find them colliding in my thoughts as I read - for good reasons!

Beauty has way more layers to it than AWINM - one thing I really enjoyed. The other is one single perspective, whereas this one really explores the Palestinian American Experience through Afaf and flashbacks of her sister Nada. Mustafah’s writing really captures the good and bad, and it makes me want to keep reading and experiencing well beyond the closing page of this novel.

I would caution you with a trigger warning as there are some triggering situations in the novel - including the school shooting scene which takes place over the chapters and can come off as rather intense.

I HIGHLY recommend this book!

Coming from a predominantly Catholic country and moving to a predominantly Muslim country is a big wake up opener in a good way. Living in Indonesia for almost 6 years has open my eyes to a lot of things. Being exposed to their way of life, I get a little understanding on the nature of their faith and how their culture works.

This beautifully written coming-of-age novel starts with Afaf Rahman, daughter of Palestinian immigrants, principal of a Muslim school for girls in Chicago suburbs, faces the shooter that attacks the school. Going back to Afaf’s childhood until the present day, we see her struggles with her identity, her family’s loss with the disappearance of her older sister, her mother who never seems to recover from the loss longing to go back home and her turning to religion and finding herself in something she never finds in her family.

The author discusses important themes here of being an immigrant in a country that never wanted you, being judged by the color of your skin and of your religion, trying to belong and be accepted and survive racial slurs by just being a good human being. This deals with hate, racism, xenophobia and mental health.

I wish there are more chapters on Afaf’s sister Nada to explore more of why she left as this is a catalyst for her family especially for the mom. Also more on the shooter’s view on how he came to be in that place full of hate. But overall, I love this book and if you have the chance, I encourage you to read this one especially now in this world we live in and maybe, just maybe we start understanding people and things that are very different from us and make this world a better place, no judgement, no hatred and indifference to one another, a place that transcends race, ethnicity, class and religion.

Thank you NetGalley and Legend Press for providing me this e-copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

This. This was one of my favourite books of 2020 and is also definitely just a favourite, ever! It left me with one of the biggest book hangovers I have ever had and gave me so much food for thought.This book is a harrowing and thought-provoking read that, none-the-less, I would recommend to everyone and anyone.

Although this book depicts an experience I have never had to encounter, I found myself relating with characters and really felt like I was there with them. The majority of the book is told from Afaf's persepctive, switching between present day, at the school shooting of the school she is Principal at, and different formative parts of Afaf's life up until that point, which leads for interesting cross-references throughout the narrative. The back story of Afaf's life was so interesting and insightful, providing a lot of understanding for a culture I wouldn't have had masses of insight into before, and debunked a vast number of stereotypes and myths.

Afaf's history isn't straight forward and her route to her religion is as difficult as her life growing up. From the struggles of being a lost teenage girl, to her father's descent into alcoholism. From her experience of racism at a young age, to her mother's unhappiness in marriage and the issue's she faces by choosing to express her religion by wearing a headscarf.

This book takes place after 9/11 calling into question the Western response and the related Islamophobia "They'd gone from towel heads to terrorists. Afa's unwilling to take off her hijab, though it sometimes feels heavy. A week after the towers fell, she considered it: Just for a little while, until things settle down, her brother Majeed had urged her. But it felt more like a humiliating surrender than protection. How many people had died rather than denounce their own beliefs? It seems they've always engaged in this strange dance with their Christian brothers and sisters", whilst also looking at the courage it takes to get past this and continue in the most 'normal' manner as possible "I will not allow monsters masquerading as muslimeen to control our lives". In addition to this, Safar tackles a very important piece around hate and anger "Human beings can be awful" and the nature of which it seems to perpetuate itself, which makes you, as the reader, really think about gun violence in America.

The chapters that cover present-day and the shooting had me on the edge of my seat the whole time, to the extent that when I was reading these sections my commute I was actually holding my breath for segments at a time. In an interesting twist to the writing style, Safar also explores the shooters perspective in a few chapters, which has me so riled up I had to take a moment. The narrative and opinions when you are reading from the shooter's perspective are unfortunately something more commonplace than you may wish, which frustrated me. I had no alignment with these chapters but they were needed to provide the stark contrast between Afaf and the shooter. There were so many moments in this chapter that highlighted the hypocrisy of white supremacy like "But he was all for modesty, was sick to his stomach seeing the way women dressed nowadays, calling attention to their bodies, then blaming men for having the wrong idea". This part of the book tackles one of the deep-set issues in America (but also the rest of the world): Racism (and in this context the Islamophobia) "White people would never believe they are the same as them".

I recommend that everyone pick this book up and give it a read, it not only makes you think about a cultural experience that you may not be familiar with, but with a situation that is, unfortunately, more common than you would like (the shooting, as well as the racism and white supremacy). I leave you with one more upbeat quote <em>"It's never too late. Every day we can be better. There's no limit. No end. You only have to believe"</em>. Get reading.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this eARC of The Beauty of Your Face, in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ Content Warnings: Racism, Violence, Gun Violence, Attempted Suicide, Islamophobia, Addiction, Alcoholism, Murder. ⚠️

The Beauty of Your Face by Sahar Mustafah.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The powerful tale of a young Palestinian American girl Afaf who has to grapple with her faith and identity while grieving the loss of her sister. We follow Afaf into adulthood, now a headmistress at a Muslim school for girls she comes face to face with a school shooter, radicalised by the far right not long after the events of 9/11. As she confronts the shooter we are plummeted back and forth through time. We are with Afaf as she faces racism from a young age, a distant mother trapped in an unhappy marriage in a country that doesn't welcome her. A father sinking further into alcoholism, a missing sister who's whereabouts tears the fine seams in her family's lives apart. Yet she finds her faith, she finds Islam and she finds her home, her community. We watch Afaf endure and overcome so much before the day the school shooter finds her hiding.

Definitely one I would recommend, I loved it. I've never read anything that centres around a Palestinian character so I enjoyed learning different things about the culture and the faith. The story was beautifully written, and as the way it flicks between past and present is seamless as we get closer and closer to the current day. I found myself rooting for Afaf to find her sister, and sympathising with her mother for not only losing a child, but a country that she also had to leave behind.

This is definitely one of my top 10 off Netgalley. And one I feel will stick with me.

The Beauty of Your Face is an emotionally rich novel and a very important read that challenges the reader to think about attitudes towards Muslims within their society.

This is the story of a fictional character, Afaf, who is the daughter of Palestinian immigrants living in Chicago.

The story opens with Afaf in the Muslim school for girls where she works as the school Principal. One day the school comes under attack from a gun-wielding terrorist. The story of that particular day is interspersed with longer chapters that take us back through Afaf’s earlier life. Including chapters told from the shooter’s perspective adds an extra chilling dimension to the story.

Afaf and the characters that make up her family are so well developed. We see the devastating effects the sudden disappearance of Afaf’s sister has on the family, the effects transcending decades. The impact of her father’s drinking, subsequent discovery of Islam and her mother’s struggles with mental illness are all depicted in beautiful and realistic detail.

I absolutely loved that Sahar Mustafah turned on its head the idea so often portrayed that Muslim women are oppressed by religion and culture and instead showed us the positive impact that discovering Islam had on Afaf. It brought genuine friends to her life and it helped turn her future in a positive direction. This was not a woman forced to wear a hijab, this was a conscious choice she made without pressure or expectation.

The descriptions of the everyday animosity and xenophobia experienced by Muslims both before and after 9/11 was deeply insightful and really highlighted to me the lack of my own understanding. It was uncomfortable reading at times but hugely important. I do really appreciate a book that not only tells a great story but teaches the reader something and this one does both.

Thanks to @netgalley and @legendpress for granting me access to this book.