Wafa' Tarnowska

This is such a sweet story! I read it to my two youngest siblings last night, and while I was reading, several other family members gathered around to listen, too. A picture of hope in the middle of destruction, this book is a celebration of family, friendship, and literature. As a book lover, I appreciated the way books brought this community together and the way books helped them through a difficult time. The illustrations in this book were beautiful and bright, and I particularly enjoyed show more the notes at the end from the author and illustrator. Books like this are a great way to introduce children to other cultures and give them a bit of a glimpse into the trouble other children face at times (although done gently, this book does talk about bombed homes, lack of water, and food shortages). Highly recommended!

I was given a complimentary copy of this book, and this is my honest opinion of it. show less

Sweet Nour and her cousin Amir, both book lovers, live in Damascus. When the Syrian civil war threatens them, Amir and his friends collect abandoned books — books of every kind and even in foreign languages. Nour gets the idea to build a not-so-secret library in basement of a bombed-out apartment house, calling it Al-Fajr, or “dawn,” which would follow the current darkness. What a metaphor!

The world of books is wonderful, Nour thought, looking at the piles of books around her. Like a

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galaxy full of stars. Some are shinier than others, but together they make the sky sparkle.

What an amazing read — and not only for children! The actual secret library that inspired this book was created in Daraya, Syria, eventually totaling 15,000 books.

Special thanks to Beverly for introducing me to this picture book. show less

It is amazing how children adapt to their surroundings. Nour and her friends were living a normal life climbing trees, playing hide-and-seek, and jumping over puddles. But all that changes when war comes to Damascus. This is a look at the life of children who are surrounded by war.

Nour and her friends bravely roam their neighborhood looking for abandoned books. The secret library they create provides a haven where people can escape into a world without wars, a world of beauty, all through show more the books in Nour’s secret library. A beacon of light, a glimmer of hope.

The illustrations are softly muted while the scenes of destruction are in grey tones.

At the end of the book is information on Syria and most libraries in the Middle East. Throughout history, the people of the Middle East have had a love of books. I loved this quote from the book: “Every book was like a person wanting to be loved, with a unique personality and soul.”

This book may not be appropriate for all children. There are mentions of bombings and war. show less

This book is wonderful. It is fiction, but it is based on true events. It’s based on the war in Syria and families that chose to stay. The children collected books from the bombed-out buildings and created their own library. It’s sad that stories like this exist but it’s through books that we lose our ignorance. This book was wonderful, the illustrations match and, I’m glad the story exists even though I wish it didn’t