Paperback copies are available for purchase at ameen-beydoun.square.site/ at $10.00 each or $15.00 for the Book 1 and 2 package. Follow Pada on Instagram.
Habibti Pada, a children’s book about a young African girl that immigrates to the Middle East, has been selected as a Finalist for Graphic Novel of the Year at the 2023 Forward INDIES Book Awards. The book is the only self-published work in the category and will compete against more established publishers like Fantagraphics and Storm King Comics for Graphic Novel of the Year.
“It’s very validating,” said Ameen Beydoun, Forest Hills native and creator of the series. “In 2020, I moved from Kenya back to Queens and began writing in the midst of a global pandemic. I had no experience in comic books whatsoever. Now I’m a finalist for Comic Book of the Year? Watch out Fantagraphics, I’m coming for the throne!”
The Habibti Pada series tells the story of Pada, a 10-year-old African girl and recent immigrant to the Middle East. Over the course of the two books, Pada makes new friends, learns a new language (or at least a few choice phrases), and wrestles with a new culture. The stories are told intimately and realistically, save for one magical moment that breaks the slice-of-life realism in each book. Pada has to use her newly learned Arabic phrases to overcome these fantastic obstacles and save her friends. Or at the very least, her brother’s soccer ball.
All in all, Habibti Pada will appeal most to children interested in learning new languages and new mythologies. It’s kind of like if Dora the Explorer were a little older and a little more African.
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