MARIAM'S DREAM: More Than a Food Truck!

Mariam Al-Shaar, the subject of this delicious new picture book profile, was born in a Lebanese refugee camp, into a Palestinian family that had fled there years before her birth. It didn't matter that she was born there, Mariam and the other refugees (arrivals and those born in the camp) had no way to claim identity or rights. They were forbidden the rights of citizens of Lebanon, and Palestine has no country to declare rights to its members. Life in a refugee camp offers few opportunities to make money or improve conditions, but women had even fewer rights. 

CHRONICLE BOOKS, 2025

The author's note and other back matter for MARIAM'S DREAM: The Story of Mariam Al-Shaar and Her Food Truck of Hope provide fascinating details about refugees, recipes, and specifics that are not part of the main text and illustrations.

Author Leila Boukarim and illustrator Sana Avedikian created a text and visual narrative that delivers a genuinely tragic story, one that reflects its seriousness but also celebrates the promise of hope and commitment. Refugees live "between worlds", surrounded by walls, witnessing the struggles of those contained within the camps. 

Despite this grim reality, portrayed clearly but without extremes, the joyful journey and success of young Mariam is trumpeted in vibrant endpapers, active scenes, and Mariam's process of rallying the women to learn, share, produce and supply traditional foods within their camp. 

(Full disclosure, I am not an adventurous eater and avoid spicy foods because of a touchy gut, but the images of food prep and products had me nearly drooling!)

Following Mariam's heroic efforts to gather the needed ingredients, personnel, and means to prepare traditional foods, at last... a SOUFRA IS BORN. A feast, a table full of food. Step one in Mariam's dream is achieved. The next steps are increasingly complex, centering around obtaining and operating a food truck to extend the reach of their success. Sometimes writers are encouraged to provide three obstacles to overcome, making a happy ending even more satisfying. In the case of Mariam and her food truck, the obstacles were countless! Some were based on money (of course), some on refugee status (sadly), and even more had to do with the birth-fact that Mariam and the others were WOMEN (tragic), without rights sometimes allowed even to male refugees. 

The text incorporates the language of WALLS, blockades to reaching a dream, but not simply walls of wire or brick. You and I both know that had she not succeeded we wouldn't be reading this book. That, though, is in no way a "spoiler" for a story worth reading. By anyone. At any age. This picture book is a terrific example of suiting many purposes and audiences. Read through and examine closely. It's a wonderful example of how nonfiction, even biographic profiles, can be original and clever in their storytelling and appeal. It is also suited for curricular connections involving geography, rights, and current events. It's a delightful invitation for cross-cultural menu discovery, and also a math-class bonus for considering small scale economics and government regulations and consequences.

 What I'm getting at is that this is a contemporary work that is an ideal way to launch WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH. This theme month is among many that are under assault in current politics, and the click/link for women's history has an undeniable focus on the past and on figures form USA history. In fact, even the most notable women of the past faced many similar obstacles and walls to the ones Mariam faced, and many did not have their stories documented. A topic so rarely dealt with in adult media let alone children's literature is presented here as a universal and uplifting one, a story and life that can teach lessons across geography and time. Dreaming. Persisting.  Dreaming. Innovating. And ... always... dreaming.