CALL ME ADNAN

Sometimes you don't see the ball coming, it spins right by you.
Sometimes you don't see bad stuff coming either, it spins right by you too.

Adnan Zakir loves table tennis. One thing he doesn't like is losing. He's colorblind, left-handed, and has an obsession for the aviation alphabet. His sister, Aaliyah, is great at memorizing Quran and also happens to be a great dancer, and his little toddler brother, Rizwan, wants to grow up and play table tennis like his big brother. Adnan dreams of making it to the Ultimate Table Tennis Championship in Florida, but first he must qualify at his local Atlanta playoffs. If he qualifies for the tournament, he will get to spend the Eid holiday with his cousins!

But when the unthinkable happens, Adnan swears he'll never play table tennis ever again. And he and his family must learn to find hope once more.

Acclaimed author Reem Faruqi has written a stirring middle grade novel about a family that must cope with terrible loss and come together as one again.

Reem Faruqi is the ALA Notable author of Lailah's Lunchbox, Amira's Picture Day, I Can Help, Golden Girl, and Unsettled, which is loosely based on Reem's own story. Of Pakistani descent, Reem immigrated to Peachtree City, Georgia, in the United States from the United Arab Emirates when she was thirteen years old. Reem is also a teacher and photographer who loves to doodle. She lives in Atlanta with her husband and three daughters.