School Library Journal Review
Gr 7 Up--For Allie Abraham, "hiding is easy: reddish-blond hair, pale skin, hazel eyes," in other words--white. That she looks "textbook Circassian…from the Caucasus region. (Hey, they don't call it Caucasian for nothing)," is her ethnic inheritance from her immigrant Circassian Jordanian history professor father. He's Muslim, as is her mother, an American psychologist who converted when they married, but they raised Allie without religion. After multiple moves, the family finally seems settled in Providence, just north of Atlanta, and Allie appears content to be an all-American girl who might even be ready for her first romance. But as Islamophobia--from microaggressions to vitriolic racism--expands, Allie's reaction is to eschew passing and actively pursue the cultural, linguistic, and religious heritage she feels she missed. Perennially youthfully voiced Priya Ayyar embodies Allie's journey with empathic insight, from quiet frustration to careful confrontations, from calm devotion to vocal confidence. She's as affecting with Allie's detractors, from ignorant strangers to unexpected opponents--including her new boyfriend's father who turns out to be a bigot. VERDICT Versatile narrator Ayyar adroitly amplifies an already resonant novel.--Terry Hong, Smithsonian BookDragon, Washington, DC
Publisher's Weekly Review
Living just outside Atlanta, Allie Abraham is the daughter of a Texas-born American history professor who is Circassian. Allie has hazel eyes, pale skin, and blonde hair, and she's always been encouraged to keep her Muslim heritage secret for safety and convenience ("I don't trigger people's radar"), but when she's out with her father, people "take one look and decide he's clearly From Somewhere Else." Now, feeling compelled to embrace the religion her father turned away from, she begins to explore what it means to be Muslim while encountering prejudice in the American South, including from those who don't consider her "Muslim enough." At the same time, Allie begins falling for cute fellow student Wells Henderson, who happens to be related to a nationally known Islamophobic bigot. Courtney (Romancing the Throne) examines matters of subtle and blatant Islamophobia, privilege and erasure, and questions of faith and identity with a sensitivity born of experience and respect. Ages 12--up. Agent: Jess Regel, Foundry Literary + Media. (Nov.)