Blog Tour Review: Love From A to Z by S.K. Ali

Item: Love from A to Z
Rating: 4
Author: Wendy

Posted May 4, 2019 by Wendy in Blog Tour, Reviews / 0 Comments

Blog Tour Review: Love From A to Z by S.K. Ali

Love from A to Z by S. K. Ali
Published by Simon and Schuster on April 30, 2019
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Social Themes, Prejudice & Racism, Death & Dying, Young Adult, General, Love & Romance, Juvenile Nonfiction, Social Topics
Pages: 352
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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From William C. Morris Award Finalist S.K. Ali comes an unforgettable romance that is part The Sun Is Also a Star mixed with Anna and the French Kiss, following two Muslim teens who meet during a spring break trip.

A marvel: something you find amazing. Even ordinary-amazing. Like potatoes—because they make French fries happen. Like the perfect fries Adam and his mom used to make together.

An oddity: whatever gives you pause. Like the fact that there are hateful people in the world. Like Zayneb’s teacher, who won’t stop reminding the class how “bad” Muslims are.

But Zayneb, the only Muslim in class, isn’t bad. She’s angry.

When she gets suspended for confronting her teacher, and he begins investigating her activist friends, Zayneb heads to her aunt’s house in Doha, Qatar, for an early start to spring break.

Fueled by the guilt of getting her friends in trouble, she resolves to try out a newer, “nicer” version of herself in a place where no one knows her.

Then her path crosses with Adam’s.

Since he got diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in November, Adam’s stopped going to classes, intent, instead, on perfecting the making of things. Intent on keeping the memory of his mom alive for his little sister.

Adam’s also intent on keeping his diagnosis a secret from his grieving father.

Alone, Adam and Zayneb are playing roles for others, keeping their real thoughts locked away in their journals.

Until a marvel and an oddity occurs…

Marvel: Adam and Zayneb meeting.

Oddity: Adam and Zayneb meeting.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

My Thoughts:

Love From A to Z is such a beautifully told heartfelt story! It’s about Zayneb and Adam, two Muslim teens who randomly meet at the airport. It’s about friendship and love and the blatant racism and injustice that is so prevalent in our world today. It’s about navigating life through all its ups and downs and finding the people that are the marvels amongst the oddities.

Zayneb and Adam are both at critical turning points in their lives when they meet. Zayneb is (unfairly) suspended from school due to a racist teacher incident and she is so angry at not just that but all the Islamophobia she has to face all the time. What does she do about this? How does she deal with it? Adam is struggling with a major life changing diagnosis that he absolutely does not want to reveal to his dad. How does he navigate that? Zayneb and Adam are so good for one another during this time! Adam is calm and measured to Zayneb’s fire and passion and they balance each other. I really liked seeing their interactions as they got to know the other. Their growing relationship was so sweet and cute but also touched on meaningful topics.

They each had a great individual story. I loved Zayneb’s relationship with her aunt and adored Adam’s closeness with his dad and sister. There are so many heartbreaking moments in this book and also ones that made me infuriated at our society but what this story really shows is how to find the marvels in life despite it all. The beauty in what Adam and Zayneb found together: love.

In Short…

I highly recommend reading this for a wonderful story about life, love, friendships and family. It made me smile, it made me cry and I hope that it will do the same for you!

Tell me: have you read this one? What did you think?

About The Author:

S. K. Ali is a teacher based in Toronto whose writing on Muslim culture and life has appeared in the Toronto Star. Her family of Muslim scholars is consistently listed in the The 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World, and her insight into Muslim culture is both personal and far-reaching. A mother of a teenage daughter herself, S. K. Ali’s debut YA is a beautiful and nuanced story about a young woman exploring her identity through friendship, family, and faith.