I reviewed A Place at the Table (Clarion Books) by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan for Lone Star Literary Life! This middle-grade novel, about the transformative power of friendship, is a joy. 

"Through cultural and religious misunderstandings (“Sometimes talking with Sara is hard work.”), involving Halloween and pierced ears; through biryani, samosas, and tarka daal, instant mashed potatoes, Hot Pockets, and mac and cheese; with the mezuzah next to Elizabeth’s front door and the Quranic verse in Arabic over Sara’s front door, Faruqi and Shovan exude possibility, writing about the ways we are more alike than we usually know."