“Come to pray, come to pray,” calls the muezzin in the middle of the night, waking young Yasmin during her stay with her grandmother in the Middle East. It’s a call that resonates with Yasmin, and her grandmother, Teta, helps her begin her spiritual practice. She takes Yasmin to the fabric store and purchases cloth for prayer clothes, helps her select a special prayer rug, and finally demonstrates how to wash before praying. Then Yasmin makes her first trip to the mosque to pray with Teta. The phrase “time to pray” takes on several meanings, not only reflecting Yasmin’s start of her intentional spiritual practice but also the call of the muezzin . Author Maha Addasi bilingual (English/Arabic) text informs readers about the Fard prayers (required prayers for Muslims) through a loving grandmother-granddaughter story while maintaining a realistic, childlike perspective. Ned Gannon’s colorful oil artwork is full of geometric designs and warm, gentle tones. (Ages 6–10)

A visit with Grandmother in the Middle East is always special for Yasmin, but this time it is even more so in this picture book about faith and family.

On her first night visiting her grandmother, Yasmin is wakened by the muezzin at the nearby mosque calling the faithful to prayer. She watches from her bed as her grandmother prepares to pray. During her stay, Yasmin's grandmother makes her prayer clothes, buys her a prayer rug, and teaches her the five prayers that Muslims perform over the course of a day. When it's time for Yasmin to board a plane and return home, her grandmother gives her a present. When Yasmin opens the present when she gets home, she discovers a prayer clock in the shape of a mosque, with an alarm that sounds like a muezzin calling the faithful to prayer.

Maha Addasi's warm and endearing story, richly illustrated by Ned Gannon, is the recipient of an Arab American Book Award, Honor Book. Featuring text both in English and Arabic, this is a perfect title for children learning more about Middle Eastern cultures and language.