We all want our children to read more, but as Muslims we also worry about the kind of ideas our children are being exposed to through books. As our children get older, books that are age appropriate tend to become more precarious, and it becomes increasingly important to censor. Children’s books catering to kids as young as 9 start introducing certain ideas that conflict with Islamic values. What are we as parents supposed to do when there is so much garbage mixed in with the good stuff? I mean, there is just not enough time in the day to read all the books before we hand it over to them. Sadly there are also not enough books out there yet written by Muslims authors that satiate our children’s thirst for reading stories.

Tips For Finding Islamicly Appropriate Books:

• Try to avoid the more recently published books, and to stick with the classics. It was not too long ago in fact, that western values did not stray too far from Islamic values. People would dress modestly, shun relationships outside of marriage, show utmost respect for parents and elders, etc. Another advantage to using classics is that the level of English used in them are much higher than most of the newer books.

• When possible support Muslim authors and buy their books, this will encourage them to continue to write and cater to the Muslim community inshaa allah.

So if you have ever wanted an ‘approved list’ of books written by non- Muslim authors that do not conflict with Islamic values here is a reading list that the ILM tree homeschool co-op in California have come up with.

Jazakum Allahu Khair to ILM Tree Co-op, Chloe Chaudhry, and Bushra Gill who spent countless hours reading books to see if they met the high standards set by ILM Tree Co-op!

Please share this info-graphic with friends, family and whom ever else you think can benefit from this list.