We learned about Mesopotamia and Babylon during our Ancient Studies. As usual, I looked for picture books about Iraq to learn about this region in the present-day. A few of these touch on the wars that have ravaged this nation. Find out which of them had an inappropriate message on a post-it note stuck inside the back cover.
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Folktales
This Middle Eastern folktale is set in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq. Disguised as merchants and mingling with the commoners, the calif and his vizier buy a snuffbox. It turns them into storks and they must find a way to change back.
The author’s end notes explain how this Cinderella story is taken from an Iraqi version. We used this fun Cinderella study to compare this version with the other versions we have read around the world. In this story, the fairy godmother is a red fish and the glass slipper is a golden sandal.
Wartime Books about Iraq
Silent Music: A Story of Baghdad
When war comes to Ali’s hometown of Baghdad, he finds comfort in his “silent music” of calligraphy. This book highlights the beautiful, sweeping lines of Arabic calligraphy. The words are hopeful for a future peace for the nation.
This is another book that will build empathy, this time for refugees of war. A family that flees from Iraq loses their cat during the journey. When aid workers find the cat in Greece, they work to reunite the cat with its family. If you have ever owned a pet, you can imagine the many emotions running through this book, especially with the happy ending.
This is the one. The book with what I thought was an inappropriate post-it that had been left by a library patron. It claimed that the book was “un-American and upsetting. Inappropriate promoting a religion that is not Christian. Promotes Koran war violence.”
Here’s what the books is about: A librarian, Alia Muhammad Baker, strives to save the books from destruction when war comes to Basra, Iraq.
Does it depict soldiers? yes.
Does it mention bombs dropping? yes.
Is religion or the Koran mentioned? no.
The illustrations are not particularly graphic and there is no particular commentary on the war or causes of war. The main point of the story is how this courageous librarian saves 30,000 books from destruction.
I found this picture book to be hopeful for the future, while at the same time, stating the realities of war. It is very appropriate to include in an elementary study of Iraq.
If you read it, let me know what you think in the comment section.
Related to Books about Iraq
- Egypt in the Modern-Day
- Board Games: Ancient Egypt and Ancient Mesopotamia