Not the Girls You're Looking For

Starred review from April 9, 2018
In this YA debut, Safi explores the internal struggle of having to “talk to more than one world, simultaneously.” Lulu considers herself both American and Arab (her father is a Muslim immigrant, her mother from Louisiana), but to many of her classmates, she’s only Arab (and therefore a terrorist). Meanwhile, she fails to meet her Muslim family’s cultural standards. Lulu is a girl who defies stereotypes: a Muslim who celebrates Ramadan, drinks, smokes, and loves to hook up with boys. Safi’s prose style has a lively staccato rhythm that captures Lulu’s spirited nature, which can easily slip into impetuousness. In addition to Safi’s focus on multicultural identity, her story provides a candid perspective on female friendships that are full of conflict, love, and angst. Through her character of contradictions, Safi offers a refreshing perspective on conformity and the path to self-actualization. Ages 13–18. Agent: Lauren MacLeod, Strothman Agency.

May 1, 2018

Gr 9 Up-Lulu Saad is ready to tackle junior year with her three best friends by her side. They'll continue to attend house parties where she'll make out with cute guys. But after one hookup goes sour, her friendships start to tear apart. To make matters worse, she's on thin ice with her mom. Lulu struggles to put back the pieces of her life and find herself in the process. This character-driven, coming-of-age novel explores relationships and identity in many forms. A burgeoning romance facilitates an honest look at consent and being responsibly sexually active. However, the romance takes a backseat to the female friendships, which are the driving force of this story. These authentic teen girls are smart, complicated, sexual, and sensitive. Their friendships can be mean and messy, but they are also fiercely loyal. This rich story also explores biracial and mixed culture identity (Lulu has a white mom and an Arab dad) in all its joys and struggles. The plot sometimes suffers from uneven pacing, but the witty writing and strong voice more than make up for it. VERDICT This debut is a worthwhile purchase for all teen collections and will appeal to those who appreciate realistic slice-of-life novels.-Jenna Friebel, Oak Park Public Library, IL

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2018
Leila "Lulu" Saad is about to graduate from high school with her three best friends by her side, but things get messy and senior year becomes a little more complicated than expected.Lulu just wants to be an Iraqi-American living a normal teenage life in Houston, Texas. But that's not possible when your (presumably white) Catholic mom is from Louisiana and her family has been openly hostile since your maternal grandmother, the matriarch of the family, passed away. It's hard when your Muslim dad is from Iraq and you've grown up as an Arab-American Muslim who drinks and frequents all the latest parties but still fasts during Ramadan. Navigating high school is tough enough with graduation, boys, gossip, family, and friends, but Lulu also has to deal with Islamophobia at school, a war that threatens her family thousands of miles away, an incident in which sexual boundaries are overstepped, and the cross-cultural puzzle that every child of immigrants must learn to piece together in their own way. Lulu's stubbornness and desire to make both her worlds meld lands her in isolation from both family and friends. Safi's debut novel offers Arab and Muslim readers a teenager they can relate to as they too learn to navigate racial and religious tensions in a predominantly white society.Delightful and funny but still giving voice to serious issues of sexual consent and xenophobia. (Fiction. 14-18)

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May 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 Safi's debut novel features realistically messy friendships, strength, and vulnerability in a story about, above all, finding oneself and one's true community. Despite the slow start and lengthy cast of characters, Safi weaves a tapestry of beautiful prose around her main character, Houston high-school student Lulu Saad, who is movingly tough yet vulnerable in a world of culture clash and racism. Lulu and her friends get up to the usual high jinks at their school, and, for the most part, it's not a problem. But then their names and reputations get dragged through the mud during Ramadan, and Lulu refuses to take things lying down. Many teens, but especially those who grew up in a Muslim household, will be able to see aspects of themselves in Lulu and her interactions with her friends and family. Lulu's snappy repartee and the sense of community threaded throughout ring particularly true. Teens of all stripes are likely to relate to this angst-filled coming-of-age story starring an appealingly realistic protagonist.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2018
Lulu Saad makes out with guys without getting emotionally attached. When loyalty to boys disrupts her friendships with girls, Lulu has an identity crisis. Daughter of a Muslim Iraqi immigrant and a Louisianan, Lulu goes from feeling "in-between" to somebody who can "communicate across invisible borders." While at times unfocused, this coming-of-age novel adds much-needed nuance to the representation of Arab American youth.

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)