Salaam, with Love (Underlined)

I love this book. Great story line that I know can resonate with a lot of Muslim kids. This would be a great mini TV series.

I absolutely loved this book! It was so beautifully written! Someone from a Pakistani household can relate to all the characters and how the main character Dua feels. This book had all the feels. It made me laugh, it made me emotional, it gave me the butterflies! I highly recommend purchasing this book. This book gives you the insight to the struggles of a Muslim girl and it captures the month of Ramadan so perfectly.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.In Salaam, with Love, Dua is told by her parents that they are going to spend the full month of Ramadan with her cousins in Queens, NY. Dua is not happy about this plan, she doesn’t feel a close connection to her cousins and she’s bummed to leave her best friend who she made a bunch of fun summer plans with.When she arrives, it starts off bumpy, her cousin Mahnoor seems standoffish and Dua feels like an imperfect Muslim compared to her, but soon enough, Dua wholeheartedly embraces her time there while getting to know her cousins. Dua focuses on what she wants to improve on herself during Ramadan, which includes ways to becoming “a better Muslim” and being a better “relative, friend, and daughter.”Through her cousins, Dua also gets to meet Hassan who is part of a Muslim band her family is in. She is instantly enamored by him and they form a sweet friendship that perhaps will lead to more?I enjoyed Dua’s cute humor and her clutsy moments that were timed just right. I loved learning more about Ramadan and the Muslim culture in general through this story. Dua’s pursuit of becoming a better Muslim and closer to her family seemed to be the central focus of this story. This story, I think, gave me a better understanding about Ramadan and the Islamic faith than I ever had before. I enjoyed learning about it from the perspective of a Pakistani-American Muslim teen struggling with her faith and striving to have a closer connection to her faith, God, and her family.I would not typically read a book with a religious theme but I enjoyed learning about this culture in the form of a sweet YA book. I enjoyed the friendships Dua made and watching her form a closer bond with her family. Some parts did read slow for me but overall I thought it was lovely. I enjoyed the “halal” romance she had with Hassan and loved the ending.*TW for Islamophobia including with violence.Minus a couple of parts (see *TW), this story was so sweet and adorable. Very wholesome book for teenagers and great for anyone wanting to learn about another culture in the context of sweet, coming of age story. It’s also awesome that Muslim youth can get some positive representation through this book.

This is a classic, sweet, and innocent romance novel with engaging touches of adventure, humor, and action. It follows the main character, Dua, through her life as the American daughter of immigrants. The characters are relatable and face everyday problems. Little Mahdi is my favorite and is sure to bring out your giggles!

Salaam, with Love follows Dua, a Muslim teenager whose family is unexpectedly spending the month of Ramadan with extended family. She ends up deepening her faith and falling in love. It's a sweet, very clean story that was extremely educational. I truly appreciated this OwnVoices story and have learned so much about Islam.At times, I found the plot to be a bit monotone and I would have liked the characters to have been more fleshed out. I also found that the book could have used a bit more editing, as many of the details didn't line up very well.Overall, this was very enjoyable and I would very much recommend it to YA audiences.Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children's Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this book. This book is one I would highly recommend. Content warnings though, for terrorist prejudice, racial slurs, and a shooting. There is a romance in this yes, but it's on the backburner for sure. It discusses a lot about someone renewing their faith of Islam (during the Ramadan season) and because of that, I personally learned a lot about the season and more about the culture as a whole. I also believe that even if you are not Islamic but are religious in some way that you would benefit from this. Its a journey of self-discovery along with learning about how strong familial bonds can be or not. It is also written in a easily consumable way for all ages to read it. Overall, I want as many people as possible to read it. Because of these points, I have to give it a 5 out of 5 stars

Dua is struggling with all the decisions that seem to be nagging at her based off her parents expectations and the pressure she feels from her culture as well. As Ramadan approaches and they go to New York to spend it with her uncle and his family, a lot becomes clear to her. She makes goals to help her further understand what it means to be Muslim to her and how to help others see them as people and not a threat.This book was incredible. As a non-Muslim I absolutely loved learning so much about the religion and their family culture and how beautiful it is! This book has made me want to be a better ally and friend to those of the Islam faith. Beautiful story of humanity and the need we all feel to know who we are and how we fit into the dynamics of our families and religious beliefs.