Meet the Author Program

55th ANNUAL ISNA CONVENTION George R. Brown Convention Center Houston, TX August 31-September 3, 2018

To raise the level of intellectual dialogue and cultural awareness in our community the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) invites all published authors to submit for special panel sessions entitled Meet the Author at the ISNA Annual Convention. Meet the Author sessions provide convention attendees with opportunities to interact with the literary movers-and-shakers of our time. Sessions consist of panel discussions in which authors are given an opportunity to speak about their book and follow-up with audience Q&A. Panelists for these sessions include authors, writers, artists, and others who have made significant contributions in various fields of interest.  These sessions also provide opportunities for book signing and sales by the authors. This year’s Meet the Author authors are:

Nanni’s Hijab Khadijah Abdul-Haqq

Nanni’s Hijab is the story of Nanni, a little girl who loves wearing her hijab. She wears a different hijab every day. Her classmates enjoy seeing all the colors and designs of Nanni’s hijabs, except for Leslie. Leslie doesn’t like Nanni or her hijabs. She tries to bully Nanni for wearing her hijab to school. Leslie humiliates Nanni in the schoolyard in front of all her classmates by snatching Nanni’s hijab off of her head. Read about how she handles the situation.

My Story As A Muslim Immigrant In America Mohammed Basheer Ahmed

This book describes in some detail the story of a very successful Muslim immigrant in USA who benefited from the opportunities in USA and at the same time he made significant contributions both professionally and socially which benefited the community at large. The book reveals Dr. Basheer’s life as a role model for all those Muslims and non-Muslims who dedicate themselves for pursuing humanitarian causes and help the suffering people in diverse ways. This book also inspires young people to work hard, have belief in God and move forward to actualize their dreams.

Young Muslim America: Faith, Community, and Belonging Muna Ali

Young Muslim America explores the perspectives and identities of the American descendants of immigrant Muslims and converts to Islam. Whether their parents were new Muslims or new Americans, the younger generations of Muslim Americans grow up bearing a dual heritage and are uniquely positioned to expound the meaning of both. In this ethnographic study, Muna Ali explores the role of young Muslim Americans within America and the ummah through four dominant narratives that emerge from discussions about and among Muslims. Cultural differences purportedly cause an identity crisis among young Muslims torn between seemingly irreconcilable Islamic and Western heritages. Additionally, culture presumably contaminates a “pure” Islam and underlies all that divides Muslim America’s diverse subgroups. Some propose creating an American Muslim culture and identity to overcome these challenges. But in this historical moment when Muslims have become America’s newest “problem people” and political wedge, some Americans are suspicious of this identity and fear a Muslim cultural takeover and the “Islamization of America.” Situating these discussions in the fields of identity, immigration, American studies, and the anthropology of Islam, Ali examines how younger Muslims see themselves, their faith community, and their society, and how that informs their daily life and helps them envision an American future.

The American Masjid Riad Ali

One of its kind, coffee table book “The American Masjid” portraying all aspects of the Masjid in America and is divided into 4 sections: 1) Niches & Pulpits: some you would not have expected to exist. It is divided into two sub sections a) Set of featured Mosque’s Niches & Pulpits, half a page or more with some text for each, sorted by state and city b) Collection of Niches & Pulpits from different Mosques not in any specific order 2) Domes & Minarets: spectacular selection of minarets representing the different ethnic background of the Muslim community. It is divided into two subsections a) Set of featured Mosque’s Domes & Minarets, half a page or more with some text for each, sorted by state and city b) Collection of Domes & Minarets for different Mosques not in any specific order Decorations: inside & outside just like the one you see in famous Mosques in the Islamic countries. It is divided into two subsections a) Set of featured Mosque’s Decorations, half a page or more with some text for each, sorted by state and city b) Collection of Decorations from different Mosques not in any specific order Extra: Collection of photos portraying the other aspects of the Mosque a) Divided into 11 sections: Yards, Chandeliers, Women Prayer Areas, Reception, Ceiling Decorations, Floor Decorations, Ablution, Carpets, Names & Signs, Calligraphy, Outside views, & Misc. b) Collection of photos for different Mosques not in any specific order

American Islamophobia: Understanding the Roots and Rise of Fear Khaled Beydoun

“I remember the four words that repeatedly scrolled across my mind after the first plane crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City. ‘Please don’t be Muslims, please don’t be Muslims.’ The four words I whispered to myself on 9/11 reverberated through the mind of every Muslim American that day and every day after.… Our fear, and the collective breath or brace for the hateful backlash that ensued symbolize the existential tightrope that defines Muslim American identity today.” The term “Islamophobia” may be fairly new, but irrational fear and hatred of Islam and Muslims is anything but. Though many speak of Islamophobia’s roots in racism, have we considered how anti-Muslim rhetoric is rooted in our legal system? Using his unique lens as a critical race theorist and law professor, Khaled A. Beydoun captures the many ways in which law, policy, and official state rhetoric have fueled the frightening resurgence of Islamophobia in the United States. Beydoun charts its long and terrible history, from the plight of enslaved African Muslims in the antebellum South and the laws prohibiting Muslim immigrants from becoming citizens to the ways the war on terror assigns blame for any terrorist act to Islam and the myriad trials Muslim Americans face in the Trump era. He passionately argues that by failing to frame Islamophobia as a system of bigotry endorsed and emboldened by law and carried out by government actors, U.S. society ignores the injury it inflicts on both Muslims and non-Muslims. Through the stories of Muslim Americans who have experienced Islamophobia across various racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic lines, Beydoun shares how U.S. laws shatter lives, whether directly or inadvertently. And with an eye toward benefiting society as a whole, he recommends ways for Muslim Americans and their allies to build coalitions with other groups. Like no book before it, American Islamophobia offers a robust and genuine portrait of Muslim America then and now.

Shariah: What Everyone Needs to Know John Esposito

Most Americans and Europeans have by now heard of Shariah. In the West, politicians, media commentators, televangelists, and others have stoked fears that Muslims intend to impose a repressive rule based on Shariah in America and Europe. Shariah has been portrayed as a medieval system that oppresses women, stifles human rights, and imposes harsh punishments like stoning and amputation. In reality, however, Shariah is a complex concept that has been interpreted in many ways over time and around the world. It plays a vital role in the lives of Muslims around the world, offering guidance on everything from personal morality to ritual practices, family life, and finance. In this timely addition to Oxford’s What Everyone Needs to Know® series, John Esposito and Natana DeLong-Bas offer an accessible and thorough guide to this little-understood, but often caricatured system. The book provides clear and even-handed answers to a wide range of questions, covering the history, development, content, and practice of Shariah. What are its origins? What is a Shariah court and how does it work? How does a person become a Muslim in the eyes of Islamic law? Does Islamic law allow Muslims to marry non-Muslims? What are blasphemy laws, and how are they enforced? How does Islamic law govern trade and contracts of sale? Do Muslims in the West want Shariah Law? Is there a need to protect American and European societies from the imposition of Shariah?

Meet Yasmin! Saadia Faruqi

Yasmin is a spirited second-grader who’s always on the lookout for those “aha” moments to help her solve life’s little problems. Taking inspiration from her surroundings and her big imagination, she boldly faces any situation, assuming her imagination doesn’t get too big, of course! A creative thinker and curious explorer, Yasmin and her multi-generational Pakistani American family will delight and inspire readers.

Inheritance Laws and the Islamic Will According to Islamic and State Laws Abdul Majid Khan

It is an obligatory duty of a Muslim to ensure while living that, upon death, one’s wealth is transferred to the rightful heirs in accordance with the Islamic inheritance law. Muslims living in the United States and Canada must also ensure that their will is in compliance with state law. Due to the complexity and differences between Islamic law and the established state intestacy laws, there are conflicts between the two bodies of laws. There are three major areas where these conflicts come to the forefront: (a) Basic conflicts between U.S. and Canadian intestacy laws and Islamic inheritance laws; (b) Conflicts with the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution; and (c) Potential public policy conflicts arising from the enforcement of certain areas of the Islamic law of inheritance. There are not many books available to help Muslims understand Islamic laws of inheritance in conjunction with the laws of their states. There are also not many Muslim scholars or legal experts who are aware enough of both legal systems to see where they agree or differ and how to reconcile the two and meet all the necessary requirements. This well-written book resolves a number of issues and challenges specific to Muslims in North America who want to write an Islamic will while maintaining compliance with state laws.The book contains authentic information, written with complete references to authoritative works and in simple layman’s language. It gives an overview of Islamic law of inheritance, categories of heirs, comparison of secular and Islamic will, citing sources from the Qur’an and Sunnah.Finally, the step-by-step instructions are provided to write a will with the help of the Islamic will templates, worksheets, inheritance tables, figures and charts.

Born With Wings: The Spiritual Journey of a Modern Muslim Woman Daisy Khan

Raised in a progressive Muslim family in the shadows of the Himalayan mountains, where she attended a Catholic girls’ school, Daisy Khan experienced culture shock when her family sent her to the States to attend high school in a mostly Jewish Long Island suburb. Ambitious and talented, she quickly climbed the corporate ladder after college as an architectural designer in New York City. Though she loved the freedom that came with being a career woman, she felt that something was missing from her life. One day a friend suggested that she visit a Sufi mosque in Tribeca. To her surprise, she discovered a home there, eventually marrying the mosque’s imam, Feisal Abdul Rauf, and finding herself, as his wife, at the center of a community in which women turned to her for advice. Guided by her faith, she embraced her role as a women’s advocate and has devised innovative ways to help end child marriage, fight against genital mutilation, and, most recently, educate young Muslims to resist the false promises of ISIS recruiters. Born with Wings is a powerful, moving, and eye-opening account of Daisy Khan’s inspiring journey—of her self-actualization and her success in opening doors for other Muslim women and building bridges between cultures. It powerfully demonstrates what one woman can do—with faith, love, and resilience.

WISE Up: Knowledge Ends Extremism Daisy Khan

In October 2017, the Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality & Equality (WISE) published and launched “WISE Up: Knowledge Ends Extremism,” a 375-page report written in collaboration with 72 Muslim academics, scholars, imams, activists, and field specialists on issues related to American Muslim life, the differences between Islamic theology and extremist ideology, and best practices for preventing extremist recruitment and hate crimes against Muslims. “WISE Up” gives voices to the American Muslim community in its ongoing effort to set the record straight on Islam and Muslims, and to show that American Muslims are speaking out against all forms of hate, including terrorism and Islamophobia.

An American Family Khizr Khan

A Muslim Immigrant family’s journey of hope and for better future to the United States and becoming US Citizen and most defenders of the human dignities enshrined in the Constitution of the United States, and their son’s ultimate sacrifice to protect men and women under his responsibility as US Army Captain. Proceeds of both books are allocated to a need-based scholarship at the University of Virginia titled CPT Humayun Khan Memorial Fund Scholarship.

An Acquaintance Saba Syed

Senior year is tough in Sarah Ali’s hometown of Wickley, Pennsylvania. As if AP classes aren’t enough – Islamphobes are showing up at the school protesting her existence! She doesn’t need an extra complication. But suddenly, there’s Jason. Jason, who’s new in town. Jason, who has gorgeous grey eyes and tousled hair. Jason, who is quiet and respectful and stands up for her. Feelings and faith collide as Sarah struggles to convince everyone – including herself – that Jason is just an acquaintance.

The Blessed Bananas Tayyaba Syed

Everyone in the village knows not to come near the cranky, old monkey Rico or his precious bananas. However, after some unwanted encounters, Rico learns a life-changing lesson. Find out how in this heart-warming tale of friendship, kindness and the power of prayer.

Islamically Integrated Psychotherapy: Uniting Faith and Professional Practice Carrie York Al-Karam

Integrating the Islamic faith with modern psychotherapy is at the forefront of the spiritually integrated psychotherapy movement. To bring this work to wider attention and to promote its continuation, Dr. Carrie York Al-Karam has brought together the present volume of nine essays, each of which is written by a Muslim clinician who practices Islamically integrated psychotherapy (IIP)— a modern approach that unites the teachings, principles, and interventions of the faith with Western therapeutic approaches.

Additional questions can be addressed to authors@isna.net or (317) 839-8157 x 278