Kareem Between by Shifa Saltagi Safadi

KAREEM BETWEEN
Shifa Saltagi Safadi
Genre: Middle Grade Fiction / Coming-of-Age / Sports & Family
Recommended Age: 8–12 years

Winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature!

Seventh grade is off to a rough start for Kareem. His best friend has moved away, his football tryout has gone terribly wrong, and he's been assigned to show a new Syrian refugee student around school—a boy whose accent makes Kareem painfully aware of his own cultural identity. When the school's star quarterback offers Kareem another chance to make the team, there's one catch: he must do something he knows is wrong. Meanwhile, Kareem's mother travels to Syria to help her family but becomes unable to return home, leaving Kareem caught between worry for his loved ones and the challenges of everyday life.

Told in powerful, expressive verse, Kareem Between is a moving coming-of-age story about friendship, family, belonging, and the courage to stand up for what's right. Through Kareem's struggles as a Syrian American boy navigating two cultures, Shifa Saltagi Safadi explores identity, prejudice, and the complicated choices that shape who we become. Heartfelt, hopeful, and deeply relevant, this award-winning novel reminds readers that finding where you belong begins with discovering who you are.