GROUNDED

Four tweens stuck in an airport come together for a rescue mission.

When 12-year-old Feek Stiles loses his 4-year-old sister, Ruqi, at the airport, he meets Hanna Chen and Sami Iqbal, who try to help him locate her. But Nora Najjar finds her first. The kids are waiting with their families to fly home after attending the Muslims of North America conference when flights are grounded due to inclement weather. Eleven-year-old Hanna, armed with flyers and Meow Mix, is determined to find Snickerdoodle, a cat who has been missing for a week in the airport, and she recruits Feek, Sami, and Nora to help. The story unfolds in chapters that alternate among the viewpoints of aspiring poet Feek from Philadelphia; Doha animal lover Hanna; Sami, who is from Orlando and does karate; and Nora, a Michigan congresswoman’s daughter who posts on social media about sweet treats. Each one has something they are struggling with, including parents with busy work schedules, a sports competition, their sense of Muslim identity, and more. They end up going on an adventure throughout the airport that involves unexpected twists and turns, in the process learning more about themselves and one another and finding their voices. Saeed, Al-Marashi, Thompkins-Bigelow, and Ali write four relatable, well-developed characters from different backgrounds who represent the diversity of Muslim communities, seamlessly connecting their individual and collective stories into a single whole.

A positive, engaging story centering Muslim kids.