Shirin is never surprised by how horrible people can be. She’s tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments—even the physical violence—she endures as a result of her race, her religion, and the hijab she wears every day. So she’s built up protective walls and refuses to let anyone close enough to hurt her. Instead, she drowns her frustrations in music and spends her afternoons break-dancing with her brother.

But then she meets Ocean James. He’s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin. It terrifies her—they seem to come from two irreconcilable worlds—and Shirin has had her guard up for so long that she’s not sure she’ll ever be able to let it down.

Goodreads Rating: 4.39
My Rating: 5.0

Would I recommend?: Yes! Everyone needs to read this.
Why?: This book is everything this world needs. Tahereh offers us a look into the lives of Muslims after 9/11 and how cruel and prejudice the world was at that time. I'm disgusted with humanity. The fact that anyone should ever feel so hated and so scared for their own life in this country makes me sick. I'm grateful for this book and perspective, because everyone needs to understand how their words have major impacts on people. We are going nowhere in this world if we don't learn to accept everyone and move forward together. The story of Sharin teaches us to respect people's differences, not judge them.