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“After her parents’ divorce when she was 9, Safiya Fisher chose to live with her English dad…When Mum has a stroke and ends up in a coma, Safiya instantly regrets pushing her away. During hospital visits, Safiya starts falling asleep and has strange dreams, which she realizes are her mother’s memories of growing up in Kuwait…While Safiya progresses in her video game dreams, her confidence grows, and this trickles into her reality…Bushby writes with nuance and skill about a mother-daughter relationship fraught with misunderstanding, and Safiya’s eventual realizations are equal parts uplifting and heartbreaking.”

– Kirkus Revies, Starred Review

A Pocketful of Stars

Written by Aisha Bushby
Published by Carolrhoda Books

Safiya and her mother have never seen eye to eye.

Her mother doesn’t understand Safiya’s love of gaming, and shy Safiya doesn’t think she has anything in common with her vibrant, sometimes volatile mother. But when her mother falls into a coma, Safiya’s whole world shifts. She finds herself dreaming about an unfamiliar setting and a rebellious girl who’s distinctly familiar…

As Safiya unlocks the secrets of these dreams the way she would unlock levels in a game, she realizes that opening her heart to the past is the key to changing her future—and that she may not be so different from her mother after all.

Primary ISBN: 9781728450698
Publication Date: September 2023
Available As: Hardcover, eBook
Middle Grade, Age 10 or older

Community Represented:

Themes: , , , , , , , , ,

Setting: England (London),

Character's Place in the Immigration Journey: 1st Generation

Book Creator(s) Connection to the Community Represented: Own Voices/Lived Experience

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