https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/viewtopic.php?f=53&t=183011
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of “The Parkour Club” by Pam Withers.]
4 out of 4 stars
The Parkour Club by Pam Withers is a fictional story that creatively showcases a bitter reality of our world. The book revolves around the lives of immigrant Muslims in different countries and how they are treated and perceived by people of other religions. The book throws light on some very thought-provoking and debatable issues like cultural profiling, Islamophobia, and radicalization.
The protagonist of the story is a high school American teenager, Bronte Miller, who is back in America after spending a year in Yemen in the Middle East. Bronte is having a hard time readjusting because she had to leave not only Yemen, the place she loved, but also her Muslim boyfriend and her father behind. The only thing that keeps her going is her passion for parkour. On her first day back at school, she meets a new Islamic boy, Karam Saif, from Yemen. Karam lost his family while coming to America and lives with his cousin’s family. Bronte and Karam are naturally drawn towards each other, but there is something that Karam is hiding. Bronte suspects something fishy and illegal about Karam, which, when later on comes to light, gravely endangers their lives.
Through this story, the readers will learn a great deal about Islam. Like every other religion, Islam has a very positive culture, but because of some miscreants and their illegal activities, every Islam follower is judged negatively. People do bad things in the name of God, which is very well portrayed by this story. It loudly reflects the message that the only thing we need to be afraid of is human itself. The world is moving forward at a quick pace, but the problem of religious discrimination is being carried along too.
The best thing about the book is how beautifully the author has delivered a potential message and successfully spread awareness about Islam through a simple yet engaging young adult story. Both positive and negative sides of the world’s second-largest religion are boldly penned down in this story, which is admirable. Honestly, there is nothing about the book that I did not like.
I found only a couple of errors in the book, which means it is professionally edited. The language is simple, and the words in the foreign language are translated side by side.
The book is of the young adult genre. I would recommend this to anyone above the age of twelve years. Readers who love reading about sports must also give this book a try. Adventure-loving readers should also go for this book. Although the writer has tried to create awareness about Islam, I think it might not be suitable for readers of every culture.
On the whole, I will rate this book a 4 out of 4 stars read. At first, I was a little skeptical about it, but it took me by surprise. The book is not only an awareness platform about Islam but also parkour. It is a unique story with a commendable message. Hence, the perfect rating.
