Summary
Interview with author Shifa Saltagi Safadi on her book Kareem Between
Welcome to Mixed-Up Files Contributer Shifa Safadi!
It is my extreme pleasure to interview Shifa Safadi for the blog today. Shifa is a regular contributer to the blog. Her sunny-bright disposition and optimistic attitude are infectious. She exhibits a continual commitment to her culture, her community, and children. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner on this journey to highlight fiction for middle graders by diverse authors, and I am honored to talk to her about her new release KAREEM BETWEEN!
All about Shifa
Shifa started off in the kidlit book space as a Muslim Book Reviewer. As a new mother, she wanted her kids to be proud of their Arab American and Muslim identity. She believed that books were the best way to connect with them at bedtime and help them feel seen.
Oh my gosh, I love every single review I have seen of KAREEM BETWEEN. I am so so flattered to have my words read and loved. I have been getting a lot of positive reviews and reactions, and a memorable moment was getting a Kirkus star! I jumped up and down like a kid again!
And also, I love when readers appreciate the football! I want kids who love sports to just adore the football aspects and geek out at all the references and NFL facts.
What is your biggest motivator?
Writing for Muslim kids is my biggest motivation as a writer. Growing up as a Muslim American, I honestly felt so out of place for so long. I wondered how to find my place in my world, and it made me doubt if I would ever belong. Add rising islamophobia into it, a Muslim ban in 2017, and prevalent stereotypes- I feel even more impassioned to provide books for Muslim kids to see themselves in, and books that provide a window for all readers to peek into what it’s like to be a Muslim kid.Impacting Perception
How do you hope your work can impact the Muslim community? How do you hope your work can impact perceptions of Muslims?
Words are so powerful.
I know for myself, the first time I ever read a Muslim book, I was an adult. I remember crying- like I could not believe that I was seeing a main character who was a Muslim who was NOT A VILLAIN. Unfortunately, popular media for so long has shown Muslims and Arabs as terrorists and inhumane and oppressed, that to see them shown as normal humans for me was so unexpected.
I want it to be expected.
I want it to be the norm.
I want young readers now to grow up normalizing that Muslims and Arabs are human- that they have stories and voices and words worth listening to. And I want Muslim readers to feel seen and worthy, knowing that they matter.
For readers who aren’t Muslim or Arab, I want them to really examine the inner stereotypes that society has popularized about us. Do hijabi women seem oppressed? Do Arabs seem uneducated? Do Muslim men with beards scare people? Do we all live in deserts?
The answer is no, obviously, because generalizations and boxes are wrong.
I want stereotypes challenged.
I want people to re-examine their own inner implicit biases and challenge their own selves to think beyond the boxes. And to meet my characters and realize that Muslims and Arabs have stories and lives and emotions and lived experiences that are similar and relatable to ANY reader.
Writing from the Heart
Do you try to be original or to deliver tried and true stories?
I write from my heart- and because of that, I always have to dig deep into a part of myself to bring stories to life. There’s a piece of me in each book I make- and even though fiction is not true, there is an element of truth in the stories I tell. These are stories that feel real because they CAN be real. And I want that to be inspiring to readers by making them feel completely immersed in the story.
Inspiration
What author inspired you?
One of my biggest author inspirations is S. K. Ali.
As an author, what would you choose as a mascot/avatar?
I would probably choose a football for this book KAREEM BETWEEN.
But as a whole, with all my books, maybe a mosaic heart box. I pour Islamic representation into my books and I love Islamic art- and of course mosaic is so reminiscent of Islamic architecture in my birth country, Syria.
The heart is because I write from my heart and I hope to touch reader’s hearts too!
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