Middle Eastern ~ Arabic, Jewish and Middle East-based Cultures and Peoples

While some consider people of Arabic and/or Jewish ancestry to be "White", out of respect for the many peoples of the Middle East I've chosen to include a unique page for works featuring protagonists originating from the Middle East and Middle Eastern cultures.

Click on the image to order your book online!
Saladin Ahmed
Throne of the Crescent Moon (Ages 18+)
The first book of a new fantasy series. "The Crescent Moon Kingdoms, land of djenn and ghuls, holy warriors and heretics, Khalifs and killers, is at the boiling point of a power struggle between the iron-fisted Khalif and the mysterious master thief known as the Falcon Prince. In the midst of this brewing rebellion a series of brutal supernatural murders strikes at the heart of the Kingdoms. It is up to a handful of heroes to learn the truth behind these killings..."
Kindle edition
Text-to-Speech enabled
Michael Chabon
The Yiddish Policeman's Union (Grades 9+ / Ages 15+)
"For sixty years Jewish refugees and their descendants have prospered in the Federal District of Sitka, a 'temporary' safe haven created in the wake of the Holocaust and the shocking 1948 collapse of the fledgling state of Israel. The Jews of the Sitka District have created their own little world in the Alaskan panhandle, a vibrant and complex frontier city that moves to the music of Yiddish. But now the District is set to revert to Alaskan control, and their dream is coming to an end.

"Homicide detective Meyer Landsman of the District Police has enough problems without worrying about the upcoming Reversion. His life is a shambles, his marriage a wreck, his career a disaster. And in the cheap hotel where Landsman has washed up, someone has just committed a murder—right under his nose. When he begins to investigate the killing of his neighbor, a former chess prodigy, word comes down from on high that the case is to be dropped immediately, and Landsman finds himself contending with all the powerful forces of faith, obsession, evil, and salvation that are his heritage." According to the AR booksite, "The plot contains mild profanity, violence, and drug use."  
Kindle edition
Text-to-Speech enabled
Barry Deutsch
Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword - Graphic Novel (Grades 2+ / Ages 8+)
"Spunky, strong-willed eleven-year-old Mirka Herschberg isn’t interested in knitting lessons from her stepmother, or how-to-find-a-husband advice from her sister, or you-better-not warnings from her brother. There’s only one thing she does want: to fight dragons! Granted, no dragons have been breathing fire around Hereville, the Orthodox Jewish community where Mirka lives, but that doesn’t stop the plucky girl from honing her skills. She fearlessly stands up to local bullies. She battles a very large, very menacing pig. And she boldly accepts a challenge from a mysterious witch, a challenge that could bring Mirka her heart’s desire: a dragon-slaying sword! All she has to do is find—and outwit—the giant troll who’s got it!

"A delightful mix of fantasy, adventure, cultural traditions, and preteen commotion, Hereville will captivate middle-school readers with its exciting visuals and entertaining new heroine." This is a graphic novel.

Hereville: How Mirka Met a Meteorite (Grades 2+ / Ages 8+)
"Welcome to Hereville, home of the first-ever wisecracking, adventure-loving, sword-wielding Orthodox Jewish heroine. A delightful mix of fantasy, adventure, cultural traditions, and preteen commotion, this fun, quirky graphic novel series will captivate middle-school readers with its exciting visuals and entertaining new heroine.

"Mirka is back, and she’s still the only sword-brandishing, monster-fighting Orthodox Jewish girl in town. Or so she thinks. When a misguided troll aims a meteor at the witch’s house, the witch grabs hold of the closest thing possible to transform the flying, flaming rock—and that would be Mirka’s hair. The meteor is changed, all right: it’s now Mirka’s identical twin.

"Doppelganger Mirka, vowing to be a better version of the real girl, sets out to charm all of Hereville, including Mirka’s own family. Our heroine challenges the meteor girl to a three-part contest . . . and the loser will be banished from Hereville forever!" This is a graphic novel.
Graphic Novel
Hardcover
Graphic Novel
Hardcover
Rokheya Shekhawat Hossein
Sultana's Dream
From University of Pennsylvania, Penn Library, A Celebration of Women Writers: "Sultana's Dream was originally published in The Indian Ladies' Magazine, Madras, 1905, in English. This edition is transcribed from Sultana's dream; and Padmarag: two feminist utopias by Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain; translated with an introduction by Barnita Bagchi. New Delhi (India) : Penguin, 2005."
----------
Click here to view the free text of Sultana's Dream
----------
D.L. Stevenson
The Hakima's Tale: The Revenge of the Blue Jinni
The first book of this trilogy features a young Arab-American girl.
See the book description below.

The Hakima's Tale : Undivided
The Revenge of the Blue Jinni, The Rise of the Warrior, and The Dawn of Redemption 
The Kindle edition includes the entire trilogy.
The author's synopsis from her website: "Phoenix Kassim, a young Arab-American girl, must face her destiny to protect the world from the attack of an ancient malevolent entity, the Blue Jinni, who lays trapped in a golden lantern at the bottom of the sea. For centuries, the Blue Jinni and his followers, the Marid, have waited for the right moment to attack. Phoenix is a descendant of the Great Hakima and has been chosen to battle the evil forces. Under her mentor, Sophia, Phoenix begins her training. Though unable to prevent the Blue Jinni’s release, she ends the Jinn’s quest for world domination through a series of events that teach human solidarity and the power of faith."  http://thehakimastale.com/
Kindle edtion
All three books are included in this edition
Text-to-Speech enabled
Jane Yolen
The Devil's Arithmetic (Ages 12+)
"Hannah thinks tonight's Passover Seder will be the same as always.  Little does she know that this year she will be mysteriously transported into the past where only she knows the horrors that await."