Reviews for Night of the Moon: A Muslim Holiday Story

The average rating for Night of the Moon: A Muslim Holiday Story based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-12-07 00:00:00 Deanna Hesson A gentle, prettily-illustrated description of a family's month-long celebration of Ramadan. Most of the description relates to practice -- what is eaten, when various events fall -- rather than the historical or religious meaning, which I would have liked to see a bit more of. I assume the intended audience is non-Muslim children who are having the holiday explained to them. For the purpose of making Islam seem comprehensible and not scary to kids who are probably growing up hearing it demonized I think the book does an excellent job of presenting from a child's perspective, which is similar to the perspective of a kid from any not-super-pious family: the little girl is mostly interested in the gifts, special foods, visiting relatives, parties, etc.

Review # 2 was written on 2019-05-13 00:00:00 Benny Ouzys Expecting a bedtime story one night, Yasmeen is instead surprised to find her mother drawing her over to the window, and pointing out the new crescent moon. It is the beginning of Ramadan - the Muslim month of fasting - and many exciting experiences are before her! Explaining the season to her friends and classmates at school, enjoying the post-dusk meals with her family, attending special events - like the barbecues thrown by friends, or the "Night of the Moon" celebration at the mosque - Yasmeen has a wonderful month, tracking the waxing and waning of the moon throughout. But the best thing of all comes last, in the form of a special Eid present from her parents... A lovely picture-book celebration of Ramadan and Eid, Hena Khan's Night of the Moon: A Muslim Holiday Story is a warmhearted family tale, full of love and joy. It offers a wonderful portrait, not just of a very special time of year in the Muslim calendar, but of a close-knit Pakistani-American family and their diverse community. The accompanying illustrations by Julie Paschkis, inspired by Islamic art, are lovely, particularly the tile-like borders and accents. All in all, a very pleasing holiday tale, one I recommend to anyone looking for good picture-books about Ramadan and Eid.