At 10, Yara is a loved and happy child living with her parents behind their bakery in Aleppo, going to dance class with her best friend, Shireen. A few years later, in 2010, her visiting Uncle Sami expresses hope in the Arab Spring uprising against the oppressive government of Syrian President al-Asaad. That hope is soon replaced by fear, violence, and death when their home takes a direct hit from government bombs and Yara's parents are killed. Yara, her little brother, Saad, and Nana (her grandmother) survive and soon begin a journey toward refuge, taking Shireen and Shireen's older brother, Ali, with them. Their goal is Jordan, but first they must reach Damascus and Uncle Sami. This riveting story is propelled not just by the drama of harrowing events as they unfold but by characters who offer an intimate, insider's point of view on recent events in Syria and the intensity of living with such violence, uncertainty, and fear. The contrast between Yara's life at 10 and everything else that happens is striking, and further underscores her losses, which resonate across the lives of many refugees. Yara does arrive at a place of physical safety, but her emotional journey clearly continues. A note reveals that author Saeed's personal story, while much different from his fictional characters', also involved oppression, flight, and exile. (Age 11 and older)

Coming of age against all odds in the midst of the Arab Spring.

Growing up in Aleppo, Yara’s childhood has long been shadowed by the coming revolution. But when the Arab Spring finally arrives at Yara’s doorstep, it is worse than even her Nana imagined: sudden, violent, and deadly. When rescuers dig Yara out from under the rubble that was once her family’s home, she emerges to a changed world. Her parents and Nana are gone, and her brother, Saad, can’t speak—struck silent by everything he’s seen. Now, with her friend Shireen and Shireen’s charismatic brother, Ali, Yara must try to find a way to safety. With danger around every corner, Yara is pushed to her limits as she discovers how far she’ll go for her loved ones—and for a chance for freedom.

Crafted through the focused lens of Jamal Saeed’s own experiences in Syria and brought to life with acclaimed author Sharon E. McKay, Yara’s Spring is a story of coming of age against all odds and the many kinds of love that bloom even in the face of war.