---
title: "Crescent Moons, Pink Hijabs and ‘Super Yous’"
date: 2024-03-15T05:30:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/crescent-moons-pink-hijabs-and-super-yous"
section: Articles
---
# Crescent Moons, Pink Hijabs and ‘Super Yous’

*March 15, 2024* — by [Sala Levin ’10](/author/sala-levin-10)


> Alum Children’s Author Writes the Books Celebrating Muslim Culture That She Wishes She’d Had

*Hena Khan Books 1920x1080 — Hena Khan ’95, below, has published 24 books featuring Muslim kids as the main characters. This year, she's releasing five new books, including "We Are Big Time" and "Behind My Doors" (left). "As a young mother, I started thinking about stories I didn't have as a kid where I was the protagonist," she said.*

When Hena Khan ’95 was helping her elder son get ready for a Ramadan party at his Muslim preschool in 2005, she had a startling realization: Though there were plenty of picture books about Christmas, and a few about Passover, Kwanzaa and other holidays, she couldn’t find any that explained the monthlong fast that’s central to Islamic observance. So she wrote one herself.

“Night of the Moon” was the first of Khan’s [24 books](https://henakhan.com/), all of which tell the stories of Muslim kids, whether they’re navigating the social politics of middle school, chasing unicorns in the mountains of northern Pakistan or learning how to pray at their community mosque. This year, Khan is releasing a staggering five new books, including May’s “Behind My Doors,” the story of the world’s oldest library (Al-Qarawiyyin Library in Fez, Morocco) told from the perspective of the building itself.


*Hena Khan portrait*




**Topics:** [People](https://today.umd.edu/tags/people)


**Tags:** [Alumni](https://today.umd.edu/topic/alumni), [Books](https://today.umd.edu/topic/books)


**Units:** [College of Behavioral and Social Sciences](https://today.umd.edu/topic/college-behavioral-and-social-sciences)