Without giving too much away, I have to say that this heartfelt debut has one of the most touching first-kiss scenes ever: up on a snowy mountain under a bright clear sky, having just taken a tumble while skiing, making snow angels and laughing … and then … just *smooch*. What’s not to love about that?
For not-yet-16-year-old high schooler Nina Khan, being a good Muslim daughter means no weekend parties, no sleeping over even at her best friend’s house because some strange man (her best friend’s dad?!) might see her in her pajamas, and most especially no talking to boys because that just might lead to getting pregnant! With a genius sister at Harvard (of course, Sonia never even looked at boys except as disdainful competition), Nina’s got a big expectations to meet. But when new boy Asher arrives in their sleepy little town, he turns every girl’s head … including Nina’s. Now what’s a good Pakistani American daughter to do?
Readers: Young Adult
Published: 2009
When young Leena is invited to Julia’s pony party which happens to fall on the first Friday of Ramadan, she decides she will go anyway and just not eat or drink. During the month of Ramadan, observant Muslims fast during the day as a sign of gratitude and perform good deeds in order to feel closer to God. Leena is still too young to fast every day of the holy month, but she is looking forward to breaking the fast with a traditional iftar dinner with her aunt who will be visiting.
What can I say? This debut collection is a gift. In eight intertwined stories using spare, perfectly measured language, hapa Pakistani American 
First published in 1983, Sidhwa’s haunting first novel has been brought back with a new introduction by grand dame Anita Desai. It’s based on a true story Sidwha heard while traveling in Pakistan about a young bride who ran away from a brutal marriage, only to be hunted like an animal and murdered in the name of honor. Sidhwa gives voice to that silent soul, giving her a history, a life, and even hope.
Sameera Righton, who first appeared in First Daughter: Extreme American Makeover, now calls the White House “home.” Sparrow, as her parents call her, is the adopted Pakistani-born daughter of the new U.S. President and his First Lady. Living under 24/7 scrutiny is harder than she expected, but being a resourceful teen, escape doesn’t remain impossible for long. Let the adventures begin!
When Aneesa, a young Muslim girl, wakes up on the first morning of Eid with just her grandmother, she greatly misses her parents, who are on a pilgrimage to Mecca. At the prayer hall, Aneesa meets two girls whose family escaped war in their homeland with virtually nothing. Aneesa learns the true meaning of Eid as she shares some of her bountiful gifts, indeed making it the best Eid of all.
With her Republican front-runner father, Sameera “Sparrow” Righton just might be headed to the White House. That is, if her father’s PR spinners can make her more ‘all-American,’ given her Pakistani heritage as the beloved adopted daughter of two headstrong activists who want to change the world. She goes from invisible teenage schoolgirl to glam chic, thanks to the campaign’s makeover gurus, but discovering just who the real Sameera Righton is turns out to be the best adventure of all. Check out the accompanying, real-life blog, 
A careful examination of 48 second-generation South Asian Americans whose parents arrived from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal during 1965 and the mid-1980s. Through personal stories and sociological context, Purkayastha explores how this second generation projects self-identification in a world where they are clearly not white, yet often not Asian enough.
Not exactly one of the newest titles (it arrived later than sooner on my desk), but certainly noteworthy because of its subject matter. It opens with the Pakistani birth of Sadika – an unwanted daughter – and moves swiftly along through her coming of age, her lack of marriage prospects, and her eventual blossoming as an independent young woman. A sense of “you GO, girl” keeps moving the story, and you can’t help but root for naïve Sadika as she finally claims her own voice and learns to navigate a discovered newly sense of self.
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