The Perfect Gift

by J. Samia Mair, Craig Howarth (Illustrator)

Sarah is sad because she cannot find an Eid gift for her mother, so she takes a walk along the secret path in the woods that always makes her feel better. There she finds the first flower of springGod's perfect gift to the world. Leaving her gift in its place to share with her entire family, Sarah grows in her understanding and appreciation of nature and what it means to live in submission to God.J. Samia Mair is a freelance author who writes in several genres, including children's and adult fiction, short stories, essays, scientific articles, and poetry.

Genres: Picture Books, Islam, Holiday, Kids, Muslims, Religion

Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

J. Samia Mair is a freelance writer whose work has been published in magazines, books, and scientific journals. She writes in several genres, including children’s fiction, short stories, essays, book reviews, scientific articles, and poetry. Prior to her current work, Mair was on the faculty of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She also practiced law for over eight years.

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Concerned that she hadn't yet found an Eid gift for her mother, young Sarah goes for a walk in the woods near her home, enjoying the wintry landscape, in all its pristine beauty. It is on this walk, in an untouched spot, that she discovers the "perfect gift" - the first flower of the year - both for her mother, and for the entire family. Rushing home, Sarah finds the supplies she needs to really present the flower in its perfect (and natural) setting, and then ushers her family to see it, thereby inaugurating a yearly tradition, in which her family looks for "Allah's perfect gift to the world" every Eid-al-Adha.

An engaging family and holiday story, The Perfect Gift is only the second children's title I have encountered that addresses the topic of Eid-al-Adha - the other one being Asma Mobin-Uddin's The Best Eid Ever - and I am happy to have discovered it, for that reason. It is also well worth seeking out, as a story that highlights the Muslim conception (well, one Muslim's idea of the Muslim conception, anyway) of nature as part of divine creation. The artwork by Craig Howarth (not listed on the cover, and misspelled on the title page) is not really to my taste, but also didn't put me off. My only real critique of the book is the flower in question: aren't the first flowers of the year usually crocuses, or other minor bulb plants? This flower didn't seem to belong in a wintry landscape (it is bright orange, and has petals as large as the palm of the hand), and for a book meant to promote appreciation of nature (among other things), that seemed an odd choice. Leaving that aside, The Perfect Gift is a book I would recommend to those looking for children's stories set at Eid - a category that is not yet very widespread.

[KitaabWorld.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sarah is feeling despondent because she can’t find the perfect gift for her mother on Eid. She decides to take a walk in the nearby woods and is inspired by nature’s beauty to create a special gift that her whole family can partake in. A heartwarming reminder and appreciation for the little things in life brought alive by lovely water color illustrations.

See other books in our Celebrating Islam booklist here:
https://kitaabworld.com/blogs/news/ce...

[Felwa Nasir · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great for kids .

[Ladyphase · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like that it is an Islamic story, with Islamic values, but it's not yet another teachy book about islam. There are plenty of teachy educational books. There are so many children's stories in English that are just nice little stories. So much of what I've encountered in my survey of Islamic children's literature so far is primarily in-your-face educational. Stories like this normalize islam and can appeal to a wider audience.

I like where Sarah lives. Maybe her reality isn't as rural, but to her young self she does life in the woods with no other houses around. I'm pretty sure "her special path to the right that only she knew about" isn't as unknown as she thinks, but that's also consistent with the mind of a child. There was a trail that passed a monk who took care of chickens that my older siblings took me to as a kid, but I couldn't for the life of me remember how to get there when I was old enough to go alone, to my child mind it was magic - the trail and the silent monk. The world can be a singularly special and almost magical place to a child in a peaceful country. Unlike many Islamic children stories, this one evokes something like that, albeit in a less fantastical way than in my personal anecdote.

[Mari]

about appreciating the ephemeral nature of flowers and other subhanallah miracles

[LisaKaren · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for the perfect read-aloud to reach across cultures, this is it. I always read a few good Hanukkah books & Christmas books to our very multicultural students, I have struggled to find an appropriate (not overly religious) Muslim book, especially since those holidays travel the calendar year. This book is about the beauty of the natural world and a young girl finding a way to share it, as a perfect gift for her mother on the Muslim holiday of Eid. My young Muslim student were the ones who's faces lit up with recognition at the brief references to Mohammed, Allah and Eid. For the rest of the classes, it was a lovely story about a girl finding a flower in the snow and protecting it as a gift for her mother.

[Bdalton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sarah finds the perfect gift for her mother for Eid, a lovely flower growing in the snowy woods. She leads her family to the woods to appreciate the flower. This simple story is filled with reverence for God and nature. Children of all faiths will appreciate that Sarah is a girl like them. A good book to build interfaith awareness

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

a lovely little story!

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written, beautiful graphics, and lovely story.