: Asiya chooses a hijab of "the brightest blue," which Faizah compares to the color of the ocean waving to the sky.
When other children laughed, it was a sharp sound that tried to fold the blue down to nothing. But the blue would not be shrunken. It rose with her chin, a banner that said I belong here as surely as the sky belongs to itself. Her mother’s eyes met hers — an ocean of steadiness that said: Walk. Speak. Shine.
For those unfamiliar, The Proudest Blue is a #1 New York Times bestseller written by Olympic medalist Ibtihaj Muhammad (with S.K. Ali) and illustrated by Hatem Aly. It tells the story of two sisters, Faizah and Asiya, on Asiya’s first day of wearing hijab.
The story follows two sisters, Faizah and Asiya. It is the first day of school, but more importantly, it is Asiya’s first day of wearing hijab—a "hijab" that signals the beginning of her journey into adulthood and faith. Through Faizah’s eyes, we see the hijab not as a political statement or a controversy, but as a "pristine blue" badge of honor, likened to the sky and the ocean.
: While Faizah sees her sister as a "princess," not everyone at school is kind. Asiya faces whispers and hurtful comments from bullies, but she handles them with a "quiet strength" fostered by her mother's wisdom.