It Ain't So Awful Falafel

Reviewed by: Mary Lehmer - Freeport Community Library, Freeport, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date:

Review

This story is about a young girl named Cindy (actually that's not her real name, her real name is Zomorod but she changes it so she has an American name). It takes place in the 1970s in the US right as the Iran hostage crisis was taking place. Cindy is an Iran teen living in the US at that time. But when the hostages get taken, her whole family comes under attack. The prejudices they have to deal with seem kind of extreme and even crazy, but they are very real. This is a great look at what happens when one group of people is singled out and blamed for what is going on in the world and in the US. The story itself is definitely sad at times but Dumas injects quite a bit of humor making it not as heavy of a read as one might think. The story also did a terrific job of explaining what happened in the Iran hostage crisis, something most young people might not be familiar with. This is definitely a book you do not want to judge by it’s cover. It might look like it’s for the younger crowd, but it will resonate best with older (12 and up) readers.

Overall Book Score: very good