A review by nytephoenyx
Once Upon an Eid: Stories of Hope and Joy by 15 Muslim Voices by S.K. Ali, Aisha Saeed

informative lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

 Once Upon an Eid is a wonderful collection of short stories and, being completely honest, I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.  I’m not always a short story person and in themed collections like this there tends to be a lot of redundancy  That’s not true of Once Upon an Eid and there was not a single short story I felt was repetitive or poorly written.  I enjoyed them all.

Although Once Upon an Eid is a book intended for middle grade readers, it’s a good primer for folks who don’t know much about Islamic culture or are interested in understanding Eid and even Ramadan a little better.  While many of the stories include a little conversation about the Prophet Mohammad, the book is not overly religious or off-putting, as can occasionally happen with books focusing on religious holidays.  Instead, Once Upon an Eid celebrates the many similarities and differences between varying Eid traditions, and present the holiday in such a way that it’s easy for outsiders to understand and learn.  I really liked it.  And I learned things!

Each piece is well-written.  All the characters stand on their own.  There isn’t any interconnectivity in the stories as sometimes happens in themed anthologies, but in this case I liked that.  I think the way each story was written allowed a greater cross-section of the overall community and I appreciated the diversity of celebration and understanding shown in the book.

Once Upon an Eid is an easy recommend.  It’s cute, down-to-earth, sneakily educational, and well-rounded.  Each story is a quick read and enjoyable on its own.  As a whole, this collection is a stellar example of an excellent short story collection, and it shares the voices of many different Muslims from many different backgrounds.  Loved it. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings