#MMGM: Golden Girl by Reem Faruqi
REVIEW
7th grader Aafiyah Qamar loves to hang out with her best friend Zaina, play tennis, and read Weird but True facts. She struggles to rein in her desire to 'borrow' things with her 'itchy' fingers, even though most of the time she eventually returns what she borrowed. She knows it isn't right but it's so hard to resist the temptation. Life seems great otherwise. While returning from a visit with family in Pakistan, Aaliyah's father is arrested for a crime he didn't commit, leading to the family splitting. Aaliyah, her mother, younger brother, and grandfather return to the states so her grandfather can receive treatment for cancer, while her grandmother remains in Dubai with her father to prove his innocence. As the weeks go by, things look worse and worse as Aaliyah realizes that money no longer flows the way it once did between her father's legal bills and her grandfather's medical treatments. Despite her efforts to thwart her 'borrowing' tendencies, she wonders if she can use those tendencies to help her family.
Faruqi's beautiful novel-in-verse tells the story from Aaliyah's point of view. As the story beings, she faces normal sorts of 7th grader things, her concerns relate to school, friends, and tennis. She realizes that her life is good other than some family irritations and some harassment related to her looks and ethnicity and of course her tendency to 'borrow' things. Things change after her father's arrest. I loved reading this book. Not only is the poetry beautifully written but Aafiayah's voice is spot on when it comes to the concerns of a normally confident 7th grader. My heart went out to her as she learns some hard lessons along the way relating to both life's unfairness as well as the consequences of her own poor choices. I loved the relationship she has with her family as she struggles to deal with the growing problems in her life. A tender coming-of-age story for middle grade readers who enjoy novels-in-verse with relatable issues.
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