A Muslim American girl at the top of her game makes a difficult choice
in this powerful and beautifully told true story about breaking
barriers.
Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir was born to play basketball. At three, she has her
own hoop. By seventeen, she's the star player on her school's varsity
team. On the day of the playoffs, though, the referee says she can't
play while wearing her hijab. Her teammates refuse to play, the crowd
shouts its support and the referee relents. With that game, Bilqis
becomes the all-time lead scorer in Massachusetts State history and goes
on to play college ball, where she is the first woman to play in a hijab
in the NCAA - she even plays basketball with President Obama at the
White House!
The story follows Bilqis into adulthood and her heartbreaking decision
to walk away from a professional basketball career when the rules once
again won't allow her to wear a hijab. Bilqis becomes an activist,
fighting for years on the international stage advocating for young
Muslim women, and eventually the rule is overturned. Written in free
verse in a voice that captures the cadence of the game, this picture
book biography, coauthored by Bilqis and award-winning writer Judith
Henderson, is both a love poem to the sport of basketball and an
inspiring story about how one person can effect change. Richly colored
illustrations by Katherine Ahmed add further emotional depth to the
story.
This book will spark discussions about respect, beliefs, values, culture
and discrimination. Back matter includes biographical information,
photos and a list of sources for further exploration. Lion on the
Inside is the first book in the CitizenKid collection that is geared to
younger readers ages 5 to 8.
