Disclaimer: I received an E-ARC via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. However this review is based on the final copy.

Trigger warning(s): Islamophobia, racism, racial slurs, bullying, hate crime, panic attacks, and body shaming. There are also content warnings included in the final copy.

Reading Challenge: #PondathonII

Rep: Zakat and her family are Black Muslims. Sabriya, her sister Nuri, and her father are Black Muslims. Sabriya’s mother is a Black Christian. Farah, her mother, and maternal grandparents are Black Muslims. Tommy is Black. Riley is a white Christian. Aafreen is a Muslim. I’m not sure if she is Black, or an Arab, if anyone knows please leave a comment and I will edit this post. Hayat, his siblings and (I think) his mother are Black Muslims. Hayat’s father (might be) a Black Christian. Morgan is Black. Please let me know in the comments if I have missed someone.

My Thoughts Before Reading: When I had seen this book on Twitter I knew I had to read it! I am always looking to read more book by Muslim authors from different cultures than my own (I am a Pakistani). Plus this seemed right up my alley.

I am so happy to say that I loved it!

What I Liked: The writing style was superb! Sabreen effortlessly switched between Sabriya, Zakat, and Farah’s point of view. Each girl had a distinctive voice, readers will be able to tell them apart. The blog posts were a delight to read about as well! I loved how well written they were. And as a blogger it was a nice touch. I really loved how they were able to build a safe community for Muslim women.

As a Muslim I always look forward to books by Muslim authors with Muslim characters. I was so excited when I heard about this book! It made me so happy to see that the author is a Black Muslim writing about Black Muslim characters. Sabriya, Zakat, and Farah all have a different relationship with Islam. But you can tell that the author cares about Islam and it shows in each of the girls characters. It was done so effortlessly and beautifully!

The Islamophobia was handled really well. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t painful to read about. I did have to take some breaks in between reading. But I still finished the book feeling hopeful.

Sabriya’s relationship with her family was great! I really loved reading about how close she was to her younger sister Nuri. It was so nice to read about the older sibling going to the younger sibling for advice. I do that all the time with my little sister and I really felt seen. Sabriya’s mother is a Christian so there were many times she felt that her mother couldn’t understand her experiences as a Muslim. Which did leave a strain on their relationship. But her mother came to her defense towards the end of the book and it was such a beautiful moment to read about. Sabriya’s father was really sweet and optimistic. I loved how he would use the Quran to give advice to Sabriya.

I really liked reading about Sabriya’s relationship with Morgan and Hayat. Morgan was such a sweet friend and the two of them were there for one-another. Hayat unexpected grew on me. Like Sabriya I did find him a bit annoying, but as I continued to read I really liked getting to know him better. I thought he was really sweet. I loved their romance!

Zakat’s relationship with her family was nice to read about! Her parents were very protective of her and wanted the best for her future. Zakat felt that her parents were a bit much at times, and they were. However their reasoning makes sense and they communicated openly with their daughter. I love it when parents are willing to communicate with their children! Please we need to see more of this in other novels.

Zakat’s friendship with Aafreen was so sweet to read about! They were so close to one-another and trusted each other. Aafreen was Zakat’s biggest supporter but also willing to call her out when it needed to be done. Readers will feel the love and trust these two have for each other.

Farah’s relationship with her mother and maternal grandparents was wonderful to read about! I loved how they were there for one-another and how Farah’s mother pushed her out of her comfort zone. It was just also nice to read about how close they were. Farah was comfortable with her mother that she could tell her anything and everything. Her grandparents didn’t come in that many times but you could tell how close knit this family was.

Farah’s relationship with Tommy (her father) and his family was a bit complicated. Tommy doesn’t really visit Farah and barely makes any attempts to keep in touch. Despite this Tommy invites Farah to stay with him, his wife and children for one month. Understandably Farah isn’t pleased with this decision but her mother pushes her to go and that she does. Throughout the month Farah develops beautiful relationships with her siblings and even Tommy. It was such a joy to read about! I love reading about children and siblings.

Farah’s relationship with her boyfriend Riley was so cute to read about! I loved how they were both nerds, and they made each other so happy. Farah is a bit reluctant about their relationship. Riley will be going to college after summer and Farah doesn’t think they can do a long distance relationship. She does decide to give it a chance though. Which I was very happy to read about.

I adored Sabriya, Zakat, and Farah’s relationship! They formed such a beautiful friendship over the course of one month. They were also able to grow throughout the book. Each girl grows more confident and stronger through their friendship with one-another, their experience from the blog and of course their own personal relationships with the people around them.

My Criticism(s): There was an error in the beginning when Zakat was making wudu. The order was wrong. But aside from that I have nothing else to say.

Conclusion: Overall I loved You Truly Assumed! I highly recommend it for anyone looking for more Muslim representation.