Saints and Misfits (Saints and Misfits, #1)

by S. K. Ali

A William C. Morris Award Finalist
An Entertainment Weekly Best YA Book of 2017

Saints and Misfits is a “timely and authentic” (School Library Journal, starred review) debut novel that feels like a modern day My So-Called Life…starring a Muslim teen.

There are three kinds of people in my world:

1. Saints, those special people moving the world forward. Sometimes you glaze over them. Or, at least, I do. They’re in your face so much, you can’t see them, like how you can’t see your nose.

2. Misfits, people who don’t belong. Like me—the way I don’t fit into Dad’s brand-new family or in the leftover one composed of Mom and my older brother, Mama’s-Boy-Muhammad.

Also, there’s Jeremy and me. Misfits. Because although, alliteratively speaking, Janna and Jeremy sound good together, we don’t go together. Same planet, different worlds.

But sometimes worlds collide and beautiful things happen, right?

3. Monsters. Well, monsters wearing saint masks, like in Flannery O’Connor’s stories.

Like the monster at my mosque.

People think he’s holy, untouchable, but nobody has seen under the mask.

Except me.

• ISBN10: 1481499246
• ISBN13: 9781481499248
• Publish Date: 13 June 2017
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 3 May 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Imprint: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

I think I may have added Saints and Misfits to my TBR on a whim just before it came out (two years ago) and then promptly forgot about it. … Until it popped up at the head of my TBR! I’ve been in a bit of a reading rut lately – I’ve been reading and listening, but haven’t really been able to fully immerse myself in anything, even old favorites. Little did I suspect that Saints and Misfits would pull me in so thoroughly!

I would like to take this moment for the traditional aside – I am a white woman and cannot begin to understand what life is truly like for a young hijabi Muslim girl with Indian heritage. This is an #OwnVoices book, and I urge you to seek out #OwnVoices review to see how the representation holds up.

That aside.

Saints and Misfits did such a good job of following a minority character in her daily life. Janna is regularly at her mosque, and wears her hijab. She deals with racism from the well-meaning friend – who does not get that she doesn’t want to show her hair to a boy – to strangers who back away from Sausan (who is niqabi). She makes mistakes in her practice, and she acknowledges there. Janna is flawed, but from the perspective of a non-#OwnVoices reader, she was very well written.

Not just Janna, though. Everyone was well-written. Sausan was a favorite, as well as Saint Sarah. I liked the relationship between Janna and her brother Mohammad. The relationships in general were all so good. Janna and Mr. Rand had an amazing friendship and my heart broke at the turn of that relationship in the story. There were a lot of good connections between characters throughout, even when I was deeply disappointed in the actions of the character.

The plot here was good, but despite the weight of the incident, I found that the weight did not brand the book as “a book about attempted sexual assault” any more than Janna’s beliefs marked it as “a book about a Muslim girl”. This was a book about Janna, who happened to be a victim of attempted sexual assault, and who happens to be Muslim. I actually liked that about the book, because it allowed the character to be more than her labels. I can see where other readers will feel let down by the lack of absolute whether on certain issues and circumstances, so this is just something to be aware of.

All together, an enjoyable read, despite some of the themes. Saints and Misfits was a refreshing break back into novels that I felt like I could just… read. Read and get to know the characters. Even though important things were happening throughout, S. K. Ali wrote in such a way that this book felt like a novel and not a social commentary. It’s a novel with social commentary, and I really liked that.

[Sam@WLABB]

Saint. Misfit. Monster. These are titles bandied around within this story of self-discovery. Janna often identifies as a "misfit" - she is a book nerd, avid photographer, academic over-achiever, who likes boys with high foreheads, and one high forehead in particular, belongs to a non-muslim boy. While Janna is struggling with this "crush", she is also grappling with exposing a so-called "saint" for the monster he really is.

There were so many things I liked about this book, but the most important thing for me was how Ali was sharing her culture and religion with me. I am a huge proponent of learning more about people, who hold different beliefs from ourselves, so that we can build bridges. In my adult life, I have met many Muslims, but I still have a lot to learn, and found some of what Ali shared very insightful.

"There are diverse ways of reading texts, depending on who you are. We all access books differently."

This quote stopped me dead in my tracks, as I get very frustrated with the social media wars waged against some authors. I accept that the collective "we" bring different experiences to the table, and it was such a relevant point Ali raised. The context was very interesting too. But, I digress....

A horrible, terrible, very bad thing happened to Janna, and she accepted to carry this burden by herself, because the perpetrator dons his "saint" mask for the community, whereas, Janna has been recently found in a few compromising situations. Right there, Ali illustrated the way many victims are made to feel. The burden of proof is on the victim, and any of their indiscretions can and will be used against them. So instead, Janna lives in fear of him, and withers away inside. These parts were written quite effectively, because I felt and shared Janna's pain. I wanted to reach into the page and harm the "monster".

"Instead, I see a husk of corn. An empty one. Because, like Mr. Ram said, that's what the master is, just a husk with nothing inside."

As far as MCs go, Janna was very likable. This girl had so many good qualities, and I quickly fell in love with her. She was bright, driven, artistic. She was fun, quirky, and a little awkward. She was also lucky enough to be surrounded by so many people, who loved her. From Nuah, Muhammad, Mr. Ram, Sarah, Tats, to even Sausun, there were so many people, who cared enough about Janna to realize something was wrong.

"I can't imagine what it means to love everyone. But I'm just going to start right here, by loving a bit more of myself. And maybe then the rest will follow."

And speaking of all these wonderful characters, I have to commend Ali on the fine cast she assembled. Nuah was so goofy, sweet, and funny, he instantly won a place in my heart. Muhammad was lovesick, but still able to be a good big brother, who meant well, and the sibling bond was excellently illustrated. Mr. Ram was such a beautiful addition to this story. I truly adored the time that he and Janna shared together. He was a font of wisdom and shared all these beautiful thoughts along with some very lovely poetry. Sarah ended up being one of the more complicated characters. I was really surprised by her and it was a pleasant surprise. But the best, was Sausun.

"Do you want him to keep thinking he's got you in control, like he's going to dictate how you act, how you are, just because you won't give in to him?"

Sausun was a niqabi, she covered her face in addition to her hair, and she was the most fierce and empowered character in this book. Sausun had an anger that was fueled by the treatment of her sister. She believed women were not chattel, but should be respected. She saw the niqab as a symbol of this empowerment, and it was quite awesome the way it was explained.

"Plus most girls who cover their faces do it because they want to be the ones to decide who gets to see them."

"Well, when you think of it that way, it sounds kind of powerful. Like no one can sum up your identity without permission."

Ali effortlessly intertwined heavy issues such as assault, bullying, taboo dating, divorce, and victimization with levity and joy. She introduced many aspects of the Muslim religion seamlessly into the story, and taught me some things without getting preachy. This is a solid debut, and I look forward to more of Ali's stories.

**I would like to thank the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. Quotes are from an ARC and may change upon publication.

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