Ignorance Isn’t Bliss: Sabaa Tahir on the Need to Bear Witness

The Reading Culture

On Today's Show

• "This is happening in our world and at the very least you can bear witness to it. That's literally the absolute least you can do. - Sabaa Tahir
  
  

Sabaa Tahir’s (“All My Rage,” “An Ember in the Ashes” quartet) upbringing in the Mojave desert, isolated nearly 100 miles from the nearest city, exposed her to an unforgiving landscape and also many unforgiving truths of humanity. Within this backdrop, one place held significant importance in shaping her worldview: The Motel, a small business operated by her immigrant parents. As she notes, “The good is what helps you survive, but the bad is what makes you wary and careful and makes you lonely at times.” Sabaa ventured into the realm of academia and later pursued a career in journalism, where her understanding of the world's imperfections deepened. The essence of Sabaa’s stories lies in the raw exploration of sorrow and frustration…and taking action.

In this episode, Sabaa delves into the experiences of her childhood that left an indelible mark on her perspective of the world. From the motel her parents ran, to sonic booms, to wearing (dreaded) dresses on Mondays, Sabaa’s youth sounds eerily like a superhero origin story. She also opened up about the “outsized impact” of her time copy editing at The Washington Post and its influence on her writing. Sabaa reveals how she channels her outrage to resonate with her coming-of-age readers, validating their shared frustrations and coming to terms with her own.

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Keep up with Jordan and The Reading Culture @thereadingculturepod and subscribe to our newsletter at thereadingculturepod.com/newsletter. Join Sabaa on social @SabaaTahir

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For her reading challenge, Authors of the Muslim Diaspora, Sabaa wants readers to open up to other perspectives from Muslim diaspora authors, including their cultures, traditions, mythologies, and humor. She curated a fabulous reading list, and I invite you to check it out. Reading challenges are always available at thereadingculturepod.com.

In this episode, we’re once again changing things up for our Beanstack featured librarian. Today we give the mic one more time to Lessa Kananiʻopua Pelayo-Lozada, the current American Library Association president, to share more about the upcoming ALA conference and exhibition. Beanstack has proudly participated in ALA exhibitions for the last eight years!

Contents
Chapter 1 - The Middle of Nowhere (for real)

Chapter 2 - The Motel

Chapter 3 - One Art

Chapter 4 - The Eyes of an Editor

Chapter 5 - Books Like Sad Songs

Chapter 6 - Back to Fantasy Land

Chapter 7 - Lego Proof Socks

Chapter 8 - Muslim Diaspora

Chapter 9 - Beanstack Featured Librarian

Links

• The Reading Culture
• Sabaa Tahir
• Sabaa's Books
• The Reading Culture on Instagram (for giveaways and extra content)
• Beanstack resources to build your community’s reading culture
• Sabaa Tahir on growing up in a motel - Vox
• ALA Annual Conference
• The Children’s Book Podcast

Host: Jordan Lloyd Bookey

Producer: Jackie Lamport and Lower Street Media

Script Editors: Josia Lamberto-Egan, Jackie Lamport, Jordan Lloyd Bookey