Challenge Corner discussion

From bestselling and National Book Award-nominated author Tahereh Mafi comes a stunning novel about love and loneliness, navigating the hyphen of dual identity, and reclaiming your right to joy--even when you're trapped in the amber of sorrow.

It's 2003, several months since the US officially declared war on Iraq, and the American political world has evolved. Tensions are high, hate crimes are on the rise, FBI agents are infiltrating local mosques, and the Muslim community is harassed and targeted more than ever. Shadi, who wears hijab, keeps her head down.

She's too busy drowning in her own troubles to find the time to deal with bigots.

Shadi is named for joy, but she's haunted by sorrow. Her brother is dead, her father is dying, her mother is falling apart, and her best friend has mysteriously dropped out of her life. And then, of course, there's the small matter of her heart--

It's broken.

Shadi tries to navigate her crumbling world by soldiering through, saying nothing. She devours her own pain, each day retreating farther and farther inside herself until finally, one day, everything changes.

She explodes.

An Emotion of Great Delight is a searing look into the world of a single Muslim family in the wake of 9/11. It's about a child of immigrants forging a blurry identity, falling in love, and finding hope--in the midst of a modern war.

Started this

fjldsafjlkadfjal you are so quick! lol

Ch 1-6 (view spoiler)[ The back and forth is kind of hard for me to keep track of.

Ali and Zahra both suck and Shadi should stay away from them. Ali saying that he drove off and left her in the rain just because his sister said to was not okay. That's not a justification asshole.

I wonder how her brother died? And why does she hate her father so much? (hide spoiler)]

Because I keep jumping around in different books and series. I need to get it together haha

Ch 7-12 (view spoiler)[ Zahra is the worst, seriously fuck her.
I feel bad that Shadi is going through so much hate, people can be monsters.

Noah seems like he might be a good friend. (hide spoiler)]

Ch 13-18 (view spoiler)[ We're seeing that Shadi's dad hasn't been the most loving father, but her wishing he'd die seems extreme.
I just feel like although Shadi is going through a lot, she's so negative and out of control. Running into the car accident, getting hurt, passing out in class, letting her sister treat her poorly. (hide spoiler)]

haha I like it! I'll dive into this after Skye Falling!

Ch 19-End (view spoiler)[ Hmm okay. I'm glad her dad was able to come home and she and Ali are together, even though I don't really like him. It's hard to say how I feel about this, I think it was too short and lacked a lot of detail. (hide spoiler)]

Starting this now!

Part 1: (view spoiler)[Hmm so far I'm slightly confused.. but I'm mostly annoyed with my audiobook that keeps pausing. (hide spoiler)]

Part 2: (view spoiler)[Wow her "friend" is quite rude to her. Also why did she freak out about the sweater.. and why are they even friends to begin with? I don't see it. (hide spoiler)]

Part 3: (view spoiler)[OMG WHY IS SHE SO OBSESSED WITH HER TALKING TO HER BROTHER? ESPECIALLY SINCE IT WAS FOR LIKE 4 MILLISECONDS. CALM YOUR SHIT GIRL. I hope they end up together because of this stupid shit. I don't understand why she is being a horrible person to her and I don't really care what is going on with her either. Sorry, not sorry at the moment. (hide spoiler)]

Finished: (view spoiler)[Blegh.. they actually did end up together. I didn't mean what I said back then. I was young and naïve. I don't really like him one bit. Ugh. Double ugh. (hide spoiler)]

Alaina wrote: "Finished: [spoilers removed]"

Haha you were so young back then

Aly wrote: "Alaina wrote: "Finished: [spoilers removed]"

Haha you were so young back then"

hahaha I was!

I feel like (for me) Mafi's fantasy books are so much fun and entertaining but her realistic books are so sad and I feel down after reading them.

Thankfully she has a new fantasy series coming out!

Oo that's exciting!