A brilliantly original debut graphic novel that imagines a fantastical alternate Cairo where wishes really do come true. Shubeik Lubeik--a fairy tale rhyme that means...

A brilliantly original debut graphic novel that imagines a fantastical alternate Cairo where wishes really do come true. Shubeik Lubeik--a fairy tale rhyme that means "your wish is my command" in Arabic--is the story of three people who are navigating a world where wishes are literally for sale.

"The mythic qualities of Mohamed's world bring our own world into sharper focus . . . Mohamed's humor often feels like a protest, as do the thick and assertive lines of her drawings . . . The effect is gritty, brazen, and full of spunk."--The New Yorker

Three wishes that are sold at an unassuming kiosk in Cairo link Aziza, Nour, and Shokry, changing their perspectives as well as their lives. Aziza learned early that life can be hard, but when she loses her husband and manages to procure a wish, she finds herself fighting bureau­cracy and inequality for the right to have--and make--that wish. Nour is a privileged college student who secretly struggles with depression and must decide whether or not to use their wish to try to "fix" this depression, and then figure out how to do it. And, finally, Shokry must grapple with his religious convictions as he decides how to help a friend who doesn't want to use their wish. Deena Mohamed brings to life a cast of characters whose struggles and triumphs are heartbreaking, inspiring, and deeply resonant.

Although their stories are fantastical--featuring talking donkeys, dragons, and cars that can magically avoid traffic--each of these people grapples with the very real challenge of trying to make their most deeply held desires come true.

Author: Deena Mohamed
Publisher: Pantheon Books
Published: 01/10/2023
Pages: 528
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 3.35lbs
Size: 10.52h x 7.62w x 1.57d
ISBN: 9781524748418


Review Citation(s):
Library Journal Prepub Alert 08/01/2022 pg. 3
Booklist 11/01/2022 pg. 53
Kirkus Reviews 11/15/2022
Publishers Weekly 12/19/2022
Library Journal 03/31/2023 pg. 1
School Library Journal 05/01/2023 pg. 91

About the Author
DEENA MOHAMED is an Egyptian designer, illustrator, and writer. She first began making comics at eighteen, when she created the viral webcomic Qahera, a satirical superhero strip starring a visibly Muslim superheroine.Originally published in Arabic by Dar el Mahrousa in Egypt, Shubeik Lubeik was awarded Best Graphic Novel and the Grand Prize at the 2017 Cairo Comix Festival. She lives, works and is usually asleep in Cairo, Egypt.