Not Now, Noor!

Product Information

Noor’s facial expressions, from excitement to dismay, are brilliantly funny and work well alongside the text. Back to the story, Noor starts by asking her sister, the coolest hijabi she knows, if she wears it to hide her snacks in, or hide her big ears, but Affa brushes her off with a, "not now, Noor" and she is off to the next family member to ask. It may have perks of keeping your ears warm, fashion, or hiding your earbuds, but that isn't why Muslim women wear hijab. Just as Noor is ready to give up on her quest, her Ammu arrives home and knows just the thing to say. Farina Islam and Nabila Adani’s picture book is a bright, cheerful and slightly cheeky look at what the hijab is and why some Muslim women wear it.

This is such an important book to help children to understand more about other cultures and beliefs and it is great to see picture books representing everybody in our community.It allows for a serious conversation about hijab to occur after, and it intentionally pushes the humor, which I definitely think we need more of in Muslim centered books.

Noor loves her mum, and all the other hijabi women in her family, but wonders why do they wear headscarves?She briefly worked as product designer in Japan and Indonesia before moving to the United States to study children's book illustration. The book is beautifully illustrated, the size is great to be shared, the text funny, the voice playful,the joy contagious but the answer for me, just missed the mark, not by a lot, but by enough that I think an adult would need to supplement the overall takeaway message.

Just as Noor is ready to give up on her hijab quest, her Ammu arrives home and knows just the thing to say. A flowery sentiment, but little Noor and the reader never got the answer as to why Muslim women wear hijab, and I think that it is unfortunate. Nabila Adani lives in Jakarta Indonesia and enjoys illustrating different cultures around the world. Big fan of what this book does: show a sweet and funny little girl lovingly interacting with her family and asking big questions.I appreciate that they are in the dining room at home and thus not wearing a scarf, Nanu is because Dada is in the picture, authenticity which I love seeing, but children need a little more hand holding to see which person the text is talking about. Perhaps the trend has me more frustrated than this book on its own warrants, it really is sweet and I don't regret purchasing it and having it sent from the UK. She originally studied Industrial Product Design in Bandung Institute of Technology earning her degree in 2013 yet found her way into illustration later in life. Yes I know there is a family tree on the inside cover, but at story time, it is cumbersome to flip back and forth. Each time the rationale gets more outrageous: hide the eyes on the back of your head, prevent you from getting nits, etc.