Marya Khan and the Disastrous Class Project (Marya Khan #5)

Ages 6 to 9

Perfect for fans of Ivy & Bean and Stella Diaz, this charming chapter book series by the author of the successful Yasmin series follows a Pakistani American third-grader whose plans may backfire but whose persistence and heart are inspiring It’s time for her class’s country project, and Marya is super excited. She loves public speaking, and she’s assigned Pakistan, where her family is from. But Marya has two problems: She doesn’t actually know very much about her grandparents’ country, and she’s paired with new kid Waleed, who is so shy he can barely talk, let alone present to the class. Marya figures if she can just befriend Waleed, he’ll help her make the best project ever. It’s time for Operation Make a Friend! But how do you make a friend? Play sports? Make jokes? With time running out before the big presentation, Marya worries she’ll never get this Waleed kid to loosen up. But after researching a lot about friendship—and Pakistan—she might be able to save this project yet!

About the Author

Saadia Faruqi was born in Pakistan and moved to the United States when she was 22 years old. She writes the Yasmin series and popular middle-grade novels such as Yusuf Azeem Is Not a Hero. Besides writing books for kids, she also loves reading, binge-watching her favorite shows, and taking naps. She lives in Houston, TX, with her family. Ani Bushry graduated from the University of West England with a background in graphic design and illustration. She grew up listening to stories her mom used to tell her and always wanted to tell her own. She lives in the Maldives with her husband and cat, Lilo, whom she loves to spoil.