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Monday, April 11, 2022

An Inside Look #212 (Author INTERVIEW)


     An Inside Look with Saadia Faruqi

(Author of Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero)


Welcome to my favorite feature of my blog...

*Season #ONE (June of 2016 to March of 2017)

*Season #TWO (Summer of 2017)

*Season #THREE (School Year 2017/2018)

*Season #FOUR (Summer/fall of 2018)

*Season #FIVE (School Year 2018/2019)

*Season #SIX (Summer 2019) 

*Season #SEVEN (Fall 2019) 

*Season #EIGHT (Winter/Spring 2020)

*Season #NINE (Fall 2020)

*Season #TEN (Winter/Spring 2021)

*Season #ELEVEN (Fall 2021)


*I'm excited to present season #TWELVE with brand new interviews/authors.  


*It has been such an honor to connect with authors and "chat" about their novel, characters, and thoughts about the story.

*This is the Fourteenth interview in which I'm calling Season #TWELVE.  

*Thank you to Saadia Faruqi for being the Two Hundred Twelvth author I've had the pleasure of interviewing.  I truly appreciate it.  



Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero

by Saadia Faruqi

(September 7, 2021)


How did you come to know Yusuf?

Yusuf is a fictional character inspired by several people. There is  
Ahmad Muhammad, infamously known as Clock Boy, who made the news in  
2015 for bringing a homemade clock to school and being arrested  
because his teacher thought he was a terrorist. There is also my own  
son, a Muslim American, first generation kid growing up with  
stereotypes and assumptions. Like any other fictional character, I got  
to know Yusuf through my own imagination.


What do you think is his most admirable quality?

Yusuf is a kind hearted person who tries to help everyone, even if it  
hurts him. We see that in how he acts towards his own family and  
friends, as well as the larger community. We perceive how that  
kindness translates into courage when the right thing must be done to  
help others, not just himself.


Is there anything you wish he would have changed or done  
differently in his story?

I don't think so. I worked hard to make sure I put forward the best  
possible story for my readers every time.


What do you think he can offer to other children that are  
experiencing similar situations to what he went through?

I believe it's really important for readers to know they're not alone.  
Bullying for any reason can make the middle school experience lonely  
and intimidating, and Yusuf's story will help in that regard. However,  
Yusuf's actions in the book are meant to inspire not only kids who are  
going through similar experiences, but also those around such kids:  
others who can speak up to stop the bullying, as well as adults who  
can change the system, such as teachers, school administrators,  
parents and even community members.


How did you research Yusuf and the circumstances he found himself in?

Yusuf's circumstances are familiar to me because my own children  
continue to go through some of the same issues as Muslim American,  
first generation, and people of color. For the other characters in the  
book, especially his uncle Rahman and what he and his family go  
through after 9/11, I conducted interviews of adults who had been in  
middle school in 2001 when the attacks happened. These interviews were  
helpful in crafting the journal entries in the book. Finally, I  
interviewed children in middle school today to find out how much they  
knew about 9/11 and what they had been taught in their school.


Do you and Yusuf share any similarities?

I share many identities with Yusuf: we are both Muslim American,  
Pakistani American, Asian, South Asian, POC and belonging to immigrant  
families.


What was the hardest scene to write about him?

The climactic scene, where Yusuf is accused of bringing a bomb to  
school and taken to the police station, was the most difficult to  
write. I had to rewrite it several times to get the emotional balance  
of grief, anger and sadness correct. Interestingly, I got a little  
help from my children's school, which received a bomb threat while I  
was waiting in the pickup like, and therefore I got a first-hand view  
of how emergency personnel, school administration and students react  
during such a situation. That situation became part of the scene as  
well.


Who do you think was his biggest supporter and why?

Yusuf has many supporters in his book. His English teacher, who allows  
him the opportunity to speak his thought to the class on numerous  
occasions, as well as his science teacher, who gives him the robotics  
competition as a means of proving himself. His friends, I think are  
also big supporters of his, even though they are all upset at the way  
he's making waves and instigating the bullies. Finally, I think the  
journal Yusuf reads throughout the story becomes a source of comfort  
and inspiration to him.


Why do you think some young people stand up for what is right not  
only for themselves, but those around them as well; while others are  
only concerned for their own self and what they believe in?

It's human nature to try to protect yourself from harm, whether  
physical or phycological. I don't blame anyone who wants to stay safe  
by not poking the bear, so to speak. I believe that we all have the  
ability to be heroes, but we need some motivation and inspiration to  
do so. For Yusuf, he had the example of his father, who was considered  
a hero in his hometown, his uncle's journal entries, as well as the  
inspirational stories he learned every week in Sunday school. All  
these combined with his caring nature, probably resulted in his heroism.


What do you think he is doing as the present time?

Yusuf is probably working on a new robot, preparing for the national  
robotics competition. He's having fun with his friends, and spending  
time with his little sister, whom he adores.



*Here are links to the Two Hundred-Eleven interviews...

SEASON #ONE (2016-2017)

























SEASON #FOUR (Summer 2018)






















SEASON #FIVE (2018/2019)













SEASON #SIX (Summer 2019)







SEASON #SEVEN (Fall 2019)




















SEASON #EIGHT (Winter/Spring 2020)

Interview #121 with Melissa Savage (Author of Nessie Quest)

Interview #122 with Tamara Bundy (Author of Pixie Pushes On)

Interview #123 with Lindsay Lackey (Author of All the Impossible Things)

Interview #124 with Tae Keller (Author of When You Trap a Tiger)

Interview #125 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Roll With It)

Interview #126 with Hena Khan (Author of More to the Story)

Interview #127 with Phil Bildner (Author of A High-Five for Glenn Burke)

Interview #128 with Leslie Connor (Author of A Home for Goddesses and Dogs)

Interview#129 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Queen Bee and Me)

Interview #130 with Jody J. Little (Author of Worse Than Weird)

Interview #131 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Things You Can't Say)

Interview #132 with Kaela Noel (Author of Coo)

Interview #133 with Rebecca Stead (Author of The List of Things That Will Not Change)

Interview #134 with Gae Polisner (Author of Jack Kerouac is Dead to Me)

Interview #135 with Emily Blejwas (Author of Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened)

Interview #136 with Joy McCullough (Author of A Field Guide to Getting Lost)

Interview #137 with Kim Baker (Author of the Water Bears)

Interview #138 with Erin Entrada Kelly (Author of We Dream of Space)

Interview #139 with Jess Redman (Author of Quintessence)

Interview #140 with Melanie Conklin (Author of Every Missing Piece)

Interview #141 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Brave Like That)

Interview #142 with Gae Polisner and Nora Raleigh Baskin (Authors of Seven Clues to Home)



SEASON #NINE (Fall 2020)

Interview #143 with Jacqueline Woodson (Author of Before the Ever After)

Interview #144 with Sharon Creech (Author of One Time)

Interview #145 with Barbara Dee (Author of My Life in the Fish Tank)

Interview #146 with Kim Ventrella (Author of The Secret Life of Sam)

Interview #147 with Ellen Hopkins (Author of Closer to NoWhere)

Interview #148 with Alyssa Hollingsworth (Author of The Invisible Boy) 

Interview #149 with Rob Harrell (Author of WINK)

Interview #150 with Shelley Pearsall (Author of Things Seen From Above)

Interview #151 with Anna Staniszewski (Author of The Wonder of Wildflowers)

Interview #152 with Lorelei Savaryn (Author of The Circus of Stolen Dreams)

Interview #153 with Linda Sue Park (Author of Prairie Lotus)

Interview #154 with Lauren Wolk (Author of Echo Mountain) 

Interview #155 with Mae Respicio (Author of Any Day with You)

Interview #156 with Audrey Vernick (Author of After the Worst Thing Happens)

Interview #157 with Ernesto Cisneros (Author of Efren Divided)


SEASON #TEN (Winter/Spring 2021)

Interview #158 with Rebecca Ansari (Author of The In-Between)

Interview #159 with John David Anderson (Author of One Last Shot) 

Interview #160 with Tracy Holczer (Author of Brave in the Woods)

Interview #161 with James Bird (Author of The Brave) 

Interview #162 with Marcella Pixley (Author of Trowbridge Road)

Interview #163 with Barbara O'Connor (Author of Halfway to Harmony)

Interview #164 with Alan Gratz (Author of Ground Zero) 

Interview #165 with Lisa Fipps (Author of Starfish)

Interview #166 with Ann Braden (Author of Flight of the Puffin)

Interview #167 with Kimberly Willis Holt (Author of The Ambassador of NoWhere Texas) 

Interview #168 with Elana K. Arnold (Author of The House That Wasn't There) 

Interview #169 with Erin Soderberg (Author of The Great Peach Experiment)

Interview #170 with Donna Gephart (Author of Abby, Tried, and True)

Interview #171 with M. Evan Wolkenstein (Author of Turtle Boy)

Interview #172 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Bea is for Blended)

Interview #173 with Jess Redman (Author of The Adventure is Now)

Interview #174 with David Levithan (Author of The Mysterious Disappearance of Aiden)

Interview #175 with Chris Grabenstein (Author of The Smartest Kid in the Universe)

Interview #176 with Ali Standish (Author of The Mending Summer)

Interview #177 with Holly Goldberg Sloan (Author of The Elephant in the Room)

Interview #178 with Jeff Zentner (Author of In the Wild Light)


SEASON #ELEVEN (Fall/Winter 2021)

Interview #179 with Katherine Applegate (Author of Willow) 

Interview #180 with Padma Venkatraman (Author of Born Behind Bars)

Interview #181 with R.J. Palacio (Author of Pony)

Interview #182 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Too Bright to See)

Interview #183 with Barbara Dee (Author of Violets are Blue)

Interview #184 with Anne Ursu (Author of The Troubled Girls of Dragonmir Academy) 

Interview #185 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of We Could Be Heroes)

Interview #186 with Jasmine Warga (Author of Shape of Thunder)

Interview #187 with Joseph Bruchac (Author of Rez Dogs)

Interview #188 with Kathryn Erskine (Author of Lily's Promise)

Interview #189 with Elly Swartz (Author of Dear Student)

Interview #190 with Heather Clark (Author of Lemon Drop Falls)

Interview #191 with Veera Hiranandani (Author of How to Find What You're Not Looking For)

Interview #192 with Elizabeth Eulberg (Author of The Best Worst Summer)

Interview #193 with Cathy Carr (Author of 365 Days to Alaska)

Interview #194 with Carol Cujec and Peyton Goddard (Authors of REAL)

Interview #195 with Gillian McDunn (Author of These Lucky Stars)

Interview #196 with Alyssa Colman (Author of The Gilded Girl) 

Interview #197 with E.L. Chen (Author of The Comeback)

Interview #198 with J.M.M. Nuanez (Author of Birdie and Me) 


SEASON #TWELVE (Winter/Spring 2022)

Interview #199 with Jamie Sumner (Author of One Kid's Trash)

Interview #200 with Chad Lucas (Author of Thanks a Lot, Universe) 

Interview #201 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Where We Used to Roam)

Interview #202 with Rebecca Caprara (Author of Worst-Case Collin) 

Interview #203 with Leslie Connor (Author of Anybody Here Seen Frenchie?)

Interview #204 with Caroline Gertler (Author of Many Points of Me)

Interview #205 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of Susie B. Won't Back Down) 

Interview #206 with Shawn Peters (Author of The Unforgettable Logan Foster)

Interview #207 with Aisha Saeed (Author of Omar Rising)

Interview #208 with Adrianna Cuevas (Author of Cuba in my Pocket)

Interview #209 with Jennifer Swender (Author of Stuck)

Interview #210 with Brenda Woods (Author of When Winter Robeson Came)

Interview #211 with Danya Lorentz (Author of the Book Of a Feather)

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