First published 2024
Kareem starts seventh grade with everything going wrong. His best friend moved away. He failed his football tryout. His teachers assigned him to guide a new Syrian refugee student around school, which embarrasses him because of his own Syrian heritage. The popular quarterback offers Kareem another chance to make the team, but only if he does something he knows crosses the line. Then his mother travels to Syria to rescue his grandparents from the war zone. A new executive order blocks her return to the United States. Kareem finds himself caught between his American school life and his Syrian family roots. He must choose between fitting in with his football teammates and doing what feels right. He struggles with questions about friendship, loyalty, and identity while his family faces separation across continents. This novel in verse follows Kareem as he learns to find his place between two worlds and discovers the courage to stand up for his values.
Genres: fiction, family-life, contemporary, young-adult
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Syria, United States
Period: 21st-century
336 pages · Hardcover · G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Content warnings: anxiety, depression