Salma Keeps Her Word
September 2026
Charming, creative Salma takes on big feelings with even bigger ideas as she navigates life in a new country, Syrian identity, family changes and new friendships in this engaging and heartfelt early chapter book series.
Salma reconnects with her first language—and with her grandmother—in the latest book in this award-winning series perfect for fans of Dory Fantasmagory and Stella & Marigold.
When her grandmother visits from Syria, Salma struggles to keep up with Tita’s Arabic—and Tita doesn’t want to learn English. Even worse, Tita seems disappointed in Salma. Salma is eager to share her life with Tita, but speaking to each other feels harder than ever. With her own creativity and help from her friends, including jokester Ayman and kind Granny Donya, Salma discovers all the ways we can communicate without words—from a backgammon tournament, to body language, to music—and what Arabic means to her family, her community, and herself. Featuring several Arabic words and expressions, the book also includes a bonus connect-the-dots Arabic alphabet activity. Twenty emotive black-and-white illustrations by Anna Bron complement award-winning author Danny Ramadan’s trademark honest, heartfelt, and often humorous writing.
