Shake Up Your Celebrations: Ramadan
Shake Up Your Celebrations is a campaign that highlights books featuring a variety of holidays, traditions, and celebrations. Many of these holidays are underrepresented in classroom and library programming, which often centers around Christmas and other Christian holidays. Shake Up Your Shelves and build a more inclusive bookcase!
Almost Sunset
In a contemporary middle grade graphic novel debut that Gene Luen Yang calls "funny, endearing, and an intimate look at a Muslim family," Almost Sunset follows a young Muslim American boy during Ramadan as he finds the balance between his family traditions and his secular middle school life. Perfect for fans of Swim Team and Chunky.
It's almost sunset, and Hassan has been dreaming about eating since the sun came up. The month of Ramadan has begun, and not eating until sundown intensifies his already busy days full of homework, soccer, and gaming. And since his teachers and friends at school barely understand Ramadan and its traditions, it's easier to just...not mention it.
As the month stretches on, Hassan's family and community grow closer together. They wake up before sunrise every morning, feast when the sun goes down, and attend mosque in the evenings. Can Hassan balance it all during the hectic holy month—faith, tradition, school, and fun, too?
Dear Reader,
I was a very fortunate kid growing up in the Bay Area, surrounded by a variety of different cultures that I learned about firsthand. I grew up meeting actual members of the Black Panthers, visiting The African American Museum and Library at Oakland (AAMLO) blocks away from home, and attending the annual Black Cowboy Parade. I learned about the land that I lived on and the various tribes that lived there before me, like the Emeryville and Berkeley Shellmounds that belonged to the Ohlone tribe of Natives Americans. The Bay Area is also home to some of the largest populations of Asian American and Hispanic communities, which I’ve had the honor of working and learning alongside in various art groups.
The one community that I didn’t learn much about growing up was my own Arab American / Muslim community...
More Ways to Shake Up Your Celebrations this Ramadan
Over a billion Muslims around the world are getting ready to celebrate Ramadan, which begins on Friday, February 28th at sundown.
Ramadan is a month-long holiday and one of the holiest times for Muslims. Celebrated during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, Muslims fast each day from dawn until sunset. This means that during these hours, they do not eat or drink, even water. Fasting is a way for Muslims to practice self-control, learn to be compassionate for those who have less, and bring themselves closer to God. People also celebrate through prayer and reading the Qur’an.
After sunset, families sit together or join friends and neighbors to break the fast. This tradition is called iftar and often begins with eating dates. Following iftar, families may also go to the mosque for evening prayer and special Ramadan prayers called taraweeh.
At the end of this month of fasting, Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Fitr, or “The Festival of the Breaking of the Fast” with prayers, food, and more.
