Kareem Between, by Shifa Saltagi Safadi

Each Friday that school is in session, I share the link to a read-aloud preview of a book from SRCSA library. The “First-chapter Friday” selection for Dec. 6, 2024 is Kareem Between, by Shifa Saltagi Safadi.

Presenting … the winner, in 2024, of the National Book Award: Kareem Between, by Shifa Saltagi Safadi. Seventh grade begins, and Kareem’s already fumbled it. His best friend moved away, he messed up his tryout for the football team, and because of his heritage, he was “voluntold” to show the new kid—a Syrian refugee with a thick and embarrassing accent—around school. Just when Kareem thinks his middle school life has imploded, the hotshot QB promises to get Kareem another tryout for the squad. There’s a catch: to secure that chance, Kareem must do something he knows is wrong. Then, like a surprise blitz, Kareem’s mom returns to Syria to help her family but can’t make it back home. If Kareem could throw a penalty flag on the fouls of his school and home life, it would be for unnecessary roughness.
https://youtu.be/xwYlwlsqJi4