Ask Me No Questions - Softcover

Budhos, Marina

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1416949208 ISBN 13: 9781416949206

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2007

Synopsis

"You forget. You forget you don't really exist here, that this isn't your home."

Since emigrating from Bangladesh, fourteen-year-old Nadira and her family have been living in New York City on expired visas, hoping to realize their dream of becoming legal U.S. citizens. But after 9/11, everything changes. Suddenly being Muslim means you are dangerous -- a suspected terrorist.

When Nadira's father is arrested and detained at the U.S.-Canadian border, Nadira and her older sister, Aisha, are told to carry on as if everything is the same. The teachers at Flushing High don't ask any questions, but Aisha falls apart. Nothing matters to her anymore -- not even college.

It's up to Nadira to be the strong one and bring her family back together again.

About this title

About the Author

Marina Budhos is an author of award-winning fiction and nonfiction. Her most recent novel is Watched, which received an Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature YA Honor and a Walter Award Honor. Her other novels include Tell Us We’re Home, a 2017 Essex County YA Pick; Ask Me No Questions, a recipient of the James Cook Teen Book Award; The Professor of Light; House of Waiting; and the nonfiction book Remix: Conversations with Immigrant Teenagers. With her husband Marc Aronson, she is the coauthor of Eyes of the World: Robert Capa & Gerda Taro & The Invention of Modern Photojournalism and Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom & Science, a 2010 Los Angeles Times Book Award Finalist. Budhos has been a Fulbright Scholar to India, received two Fellowships from the New Jersey Council on the Arts, and is a professor of English at William Paterson University. You can visit her online at MarinaBudhos.com.

From School Library Journal

Gr 7-10-The Hossain family, immigrants from Bangladesh, have been living in New York illegally for many years after their tourist visas expired. Nadira, a shy 14-year-old, has always been jealous of her overachieving older sister, Aisha. But her self-absorbed feelings seem inconsequential after the girls' father, Abba, is arrested at the U.S.-Canadian border shortly after 9/11 for having an expired visa. While their mother remains in a Canadian homeless shelter, the girls return to Queens to stay with relatives and await Abba's fate. The threat of deportation always looms. Certain that she can convince the government that their father's arrest was a mistake, Aisha begins a letter-writing campaign. But when it becomes clear that these efforts are in vain, Aisha's confidence crumbles and she gives up-on everything. It's up to Nadira to be the glue that holds her family together. When Abba's trial begins, Nadira calls upon an inner strength she didn't realize she possessed. Marina Budhos's novel (Atheneum, 2006) paints a compelling portrait of what it was like to be a Muslim teen living in the United States following 9/11. The characters are believable and well-rounded, especially Nadira, who grows from a naive and whiny teenager into a mature, level-headed young woman. Abby Craden's softly accented voice brings to life the emotional turmoil felt by the sisters, and she portrays male and female characters equally well. An excellent listen and an important addition to the study of the immigrant experience.-Alissa Bach, Oxford Public Library, MIα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

About this edition

• Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 1416949208
• ISBN 13: 9781416949206
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 192