In Hena Khan's fun yet touching new book series, Chasing the Dream, 4th grader Zayd Saleem is set on becoming an amazing basketball player. These books center around Zayd’s obsession with basketball, so you would think I would be the last person to pick it up off the shelf. Yet these inspiring stories about the everyday challenges of a Pakistani-American boy pursuing his dream managed to grasp my attention and win my love even though I am not a huge fan of sports.
The first book in the series, Power Forward, is about Zayd’s efforts to make his dream team, the one that his BFF, Adam, is on. Unfortunately, his parents care more about him mastering the violin, and when (SPOILER ALERT) Zayd gets grounded for blowing off violin practice, it seems as though he has lost his chance to try out for the Gold Team. Soon, Zayd has to deal with extra music lessons to make up for the lost practice while also maintaining a food journal to keep track of what he eats (Zayd is very underweight and suffers from unusual stomach pains). Can Zayd still try out for the Gold Team and accomplish what he had always wanted?
We find out in On Point, the second book in this series, that Zayd does accomplish his goal but in the process, he learns that many new challenges lie ahead both at school and at home. After finally making the Gold Team, Zayd thought his troubles were over (he had also hit 60 pounds!), but his favorite uncle getting married turns life into a circus at home, and pretty soon the Gold Team begins to struggle. Zayd can’t help but wonder if it is because of him. Even worse, his best friend Adam suddenly doesn’t seem to be interested in basketball anymore, and has turned to football instead. Zayd finds himself having to suddenly navigate challenging times not only on his new basketball team, but in dealing with the changes in his relationships with both his best friend and his favorite uncle, all the while trying to stay true to his family and friends.
This book series is a huge contrast to Hena Khan’s previous book, Amina’s Voice, but I loved it just as much. Amina’s Voice told a poignant, artful story about a second generation Pakistani-American girl’s struggle to find her voice, both in the sense of overcoming the challenges of a typical middle schooler, but also in trying to live up to certain cultural expectations imposed by a distant uncle visiting from Pakistan. The funny thing is, Amina’s near perfect, angelic character didn’t resonate with me as much as Zayd’s imperfect, flawed self. I was able to relate to how Zayd got grounded and ditched violin (something his parents wanted him to love), for his true passion, basketball. Even though Amina was definitely more like me (she played the piano and loved to sing), it just wasn’t as easy to imagine myself in her shoes.
Something I love about both Amina’s Voice and the Chasing the Dream series is Hena’s frequent use of cultural and religious references, as well as to foods from Pakistan like when Zayd’s grandma wanted to fatten Zayd up with paratha. I also loved that Zayd’s grandpa teaches him cricket and watches ridiculous soap operas with him and his sister. These descriptive and thoughtful details help the reader to understand Muslim culture while laughing along with the characters and thinking of our unique relationships with our own relatives. Having read each of Hena’s books in this series in one sitting, I am incredibly excited for the next one to come out in October!
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