A Lemon for Safiya by Jemima Shafei-Ongu illustrated by Nisaluk Chantanakom

"It was Safiya who first spotted the old woman, sitting on the edge of the footpath, sock-sandalled feet in the gutter, busy cars speeding past."

The woman is sitting alone. She is holding a 'bright yellow lemon' in the palm of her hand. When the family ask where she lives it is clear the lady is describing somewhere from her past. The woman talks about her daughter who is named Hanna - this means happiness in Arabic. Luckily the old lady is wearing a bracelet with her name - Maryam. It is such a sweet moment when the child reaches across the car seat to hold the old lady's hand and that is when she sees the bracelet. 

Bookseller blurb: They reached a giant lemon tree. The old woman sat up, tapping an urgent finger against the window. 'Hay! Hay! Hanna zarr'et ha. Hay!' 'She's saying that Hanna planted this tree,' Mama said as Dad pulled over. 'It's a beautiful tree, shajrah hhelweh,' Mama said to the old woman.

 When a little girl, Safiya, and her family help Maryam, a lost and confused stranger by the side of the road, to find her way home, they begin to understand who she is and the rich and remarkable life she has lived. Through kind-natured Safiya, we come to see Maryam, a woman who had been made invisible by society because of her ethnicity, race, religion, language, age and now dementia. With Arabic text interspersed throughout, A Lemon for Safiya is a wonderful exploration of language, diversity and culture.

Listening to an author, or in this case illustrator, talk about the inspiration for their book can make a big difference to how you perceive a text.  This book will be published in early June 2025 but yesterday I attended a conference at our New South Wales State Library and for one of the sessions four authors were invited to speak for five minutes about their new or first book. 

Nisaluk Chantanakom has added delicate art to this story and the memories of the old lady appear in sepia behind each illustration so that even if you don't speak Arabic it is easy to anticipate what the lady is saying. The words are translated too and there is a full glossary at the back of the book. Nisaluk is originally from Thailand but now lives in Sydney.  She was shortlisted for the CBCA New Illustrator with her book A Teaspoon of Light.

About this book she says: I tried to imagine Maryam standing beneath a lemon tree, her mind filled with vivid memories she can’t forget, while she struggles to recall the reality of the present. During this time, an elderly Greek woman with dementia often wandered into our backyard and asked for lemons. She seemed to remember we had a lemon tree, but not that the lemons weren’t yet ripe. I drew inspiration from her postures, expressions and manner for my illustrations of Maryam. Seeing my neighbour’s confusion helped me in my approach to illustrating Maryam’s memories. I chose to depict them as fragmented, using sketchy, childlike crayon marks. Some of these marks are tiny scribbles that I then scanned and enlarged, adding to their raw quality. I felt it was important to have different styles for the present and Maryam’s past. The present is depicted with a full colour palette and a very detailed style. For Maryam’s memories, I combined fine pencil work with scribbled crayon textures and rough 

watercolours patches. (from the teachers notes for A lemon for Safiya)

Jemima Shafei-Ongu is the author of three books. Jemima said (also in the teachers notes): 

A Lemon for Safiya was inspired by true events that happened when my family and I were living in Melbourne around 2006. We found a lost and confused old woman by the side of the road, with not too dissimilar circumstances to Maryam in this story. I have also worked with many children in schools who felt sad and confused when someone they loved, like a grandparent, became impacted by dementia. I also love lemons, and along with olives, they play a special role in my culture (I am of the Levant), and they have a special place in my heart. Nature has a way to teach us about life, about patience, about respect for life and about trust in its process. Lemons, like much of nature, have a life cycle that we can be trustees of and agents to.

The publisher and my conference companion suggest this book could be read alongside Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge. I am not entirely convinced about this but that famous book is a good one to use if you are talking about memories or in fact it is just a very special book to read at any time. 

A better companion book might be this one:

If all the world were ...

And if you are talking about cultural identity and memory you might look for this one:

Tomorrow by Nadine Kaadan

"In my mind I did this book for Syrian kids ... but when I read it here in the UK it was an amazing experience ... children are curious about what's going on ... they empathise in a beautiful way." Nadine Kaadine

"The whole idea of the book (is) how do you go out of your dark space. How do you deal with what's going on around you? ... You can do drawing and painting.  And tomorrow will be better." Nadine Kaadine

Yazan wants to play outside. He wants to go to the park. He wants to ride his bike. He wants his mum and dad to spend time with him. He wants things to back back to the way they were before.

"Now the minute (his mum) woke up she would watch the news with the volume turned up so loud."

Yazan tries to keep busy with drawing and the construction of a pillow castle but looking at his red bike his need to get outside becomes quite desperate. 

"He knew his mother would be angry if he left without her permission."

Yazan steps outside but everything is different. There are no other children playing on the street, the food vendors are gone. Yazan does not know where to go or what to do. Then his father arrives and takes him back inside. No one is cross. His mother picks up her paintbrushes and paints and the pair head into Yazan's room where she paints the park of his dreams. For now it is not safe to go outside but there is a sense of hope that one day, perhaps even tomorrow, that might change.

Tomorrow was originally written in Arabic. Lantana, the publisher do not list a translator so I am assuming that since Nadine now lives in London she may have done the translation herself. I purchased this book as part of my preparation for a library conference on the topic International Picture books. The organisers have asked me to focus on books for students aged 10-14. 

The war in Syria is one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world today. As of March 2020, nearly 600 thousand people have been killed or are missing as a result of the war. More than 2 million people have been injured and now live with permanent disabilities. 

More than 6.7 million people have had to leave their homes due to violence, but remain in Syria and are known as internally displaced persons. Another 6.6 million people have had to leave Syria, becoming refugees. Together, that’s more than 13.5 million people who have fled their homes. That number is more than half of Syria’s pre-war population. Since the war started, more than 1 million Syrian children have been born in neighbouring countries as refugees. Kidsboostimmunity

Tomorrow is a book you could share with a group of younger children aged 7+ but I think it could also be used as a discussion starter with an older group. You might like to use this video as a way to help your students understand a little more about the impact of the war in Syria and how it has affected the children. 

Kaadan crafts a happy ending within an active war context, no easy feat ... Kirkus

Yazan used to go to the park, he used to ride his bike, he used to paint pictures with his mother but things have changed; now his mother watches the television news with the sound turned up loud and his father makes lots of phone calls.  Simple, stark, gloomy and dark watercolor and pencil illustrations show Yazan’s empty world where he is not even allowed to go outside.  It is not safe.  There is a war on.  This is Syria and it is the present day.  As the author tells us, many Syrian children are living a life like Yazan’s, waiting and hoping for a better, happier tomorrow. Youth Services Book reviews

This story is unique in a number of ways. Instead of focusing on people fleeing their country it focuses on the experience of a boy in his home as it is besieged by war. Reading Pebbles

A book which promotes empathy and gives children a space to ask questions about the more frightening things in the world. Book Murmurmation

In this video Nadine talks about the impact of the war in Syria on her work. You can see Nadine's other books here on her website. Only two are available in English - Tomorrow and The Jasmine Sneeze.  Nadine was born in Syria but moved to the UK in 2012 when the war began. You can read more about this experience here.  In this interview, Nadine talks about the importance of book translation and the implications for publishers. You can hear Nadine read he book in Arabic and then English on this video (I suggest you begin around the 19 minute mark). 

Companion reads:

Azzi in Between

The Colour of Home

Vanishing Colors

If you are working with a group of older students you might introduce them to these middle grade novels about the war in Syria:

No Ballet Shoes in Syria

The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle

A House without Walls

The day Saida arrived by Susana Gomez Redondo illustrated by Sonja Wimmer translated by Lawrence Schimel

Blurb: "The new girl, from Morocco, doesn't speak. She doesn't speak English, that is. But when her classmate welcomes the girl the share her native Arabic, the two forge a forever friendship while learning about the vast wonders in the world around them."

The narrator of this gentle story is determined to help her new friend Saida find her words and in turn the young English speaking girl will learn new words too such as these:

Blue 'azraq  أزرق

Butterfly farasha  فراشة 

Pelican baje  بجع 

Rainbow qus almatar   قوس المطر

Saedia (Saida) which means Happy  سعيدة

This is a book I would share with children aged 7+ but you could also use it with an older group. This text quote would make a terrific starting point for a discussion about words and communication and the power of language:

"And we knew that in all languages, there are words as warm as breath and others cold as metal. Words that bring us together, and words that separate. Words that cause hurt, words that awaken laughter. Words that tickle when they're spoken, and others that, when we hear them, feel like a hug."

Read some reviews of this book:

A joyous, lyrical text—including English translations and pronunciations and the complete Arabic alphabet—offers an accessible, fresh approach to talking about immigration.  The Ladybug Reads

A lyrical, playful book about immigration, respect, learning, and friendship across cultures. Kirkus

Drenched in emotion, Wimmer conjures up the emotions felt by Saida when she is unable to express herself. The illustrations are fantastical: the friends climb onto a hippopotamus, walk a clothesline as a high wire, and sail away on a hot air balloon. Butler's Pantry

Who are Blue Dot? "Blue Dot Kids Press inspires curiosity with beautifully crafted stories that connect us to each other and the planet we share. Written and illustrated by impassioned storytellers and artists from around the world, our books engage young readers’ innate sense of wonder and empathy, connecting them to our global community and the pale blue dot we call home."

Here is a video of Lawrence Schimel reading an extract from this book.

I would pair this book with Phileas's Fortune.

Stepping Stones: A Refugee family's Journey by Margriet Ruurs illustrated by Nizar Ali Badrby

An astonishing book that allows the humanity of refugees to speak louder than politics and introduces readers to one of Syria's incredible artists. Kirkus

Look at the words from Kirkus. I love the word - ASTONISHING! This book is so important it should be a part of every library collection - school libraries and public libraries. I am saying this because I know this book was not purchased by any of the public libraries near my home and only one local school had a copy which sadly they could not find. One small fact that might convince you of the importance of this book. I was very happy to read sales of this book in Canada raised $60,000 for refugees.

Another measure of the importance of this book. I have discovered it has been translated into Dutch, German, Vietnamese, Turkish, Portuguese, Korean and Spanish. In 2017 this book won the Bolen Children's Book Award in Canada (Vancouver Island City of Victoria).

I highly recommend you take a couple of minutes and watch this video which shows Nizar Ali Badr at work creating his stepping stone illustration. You can see full size photos of his work on this BBC News site. Stepping Stones was included with the Lamont Standing order in 2017 and they also provided a set of teaching ideas. If you need further ideas here are a set of notes from University of Queensland Press.

Here is the blurb:

"Rama and her family are forced to leave behind everything they know and love. With only what they can carry on their backs, Rama's family sets out to find refuge in Europe."

You can read more about this book on the Stepping Stones website.

Every public and school library will want this book. It’s so important for us to try to understand the plight of people whose countries have been torn apart by war. Stepping Stones allows us to enter into the feelings and experiences of a young refugee girl, and by so doing, get an idea of her past and her future. It’s a moving story, and one that I hope touches many hearts. The Book Chook

For further reading about the Refugee Experience using picture books take a look at my Pinterest collection.  I would begin with The Colour of Home by Mary Hoffman, Azzi in between by Sarah Garland, Where will I Live and Out by Angela May George.