在桌子上的一个地方讲述两个中学女孩，伊丽莎白和萨拉的故事 - 一个犹太人和一个穆斯林 -whose friendship从萨拉的母亲教授南亚烹饪班。伊丽莎白是一个崭露头角的厨师和萨拉是学校的新孩子。两个女孩都有母亲正在学习成为美国公民，并且随着女孩们倾向于彼此，他们必须学会问尴尬的问题，甚至以牺牲其他人的牺牲为代价才能享受诚实的答案。。
While, at times, it seems our country is struggling with deep divides that appear insurmountable, this delightful book teaches its readers that difference does not inherently mean discordance. What’s more, it provides a positive example for its readers on how to navigate the very differences that make us each andevery person unique。
这个及时的中年小说是由萨迪亚法鲁奇共同撰写的，来自巴基斯坦的一个移民，来自巴基斯坦，他有两个孩子，劳拉·索凡，也是一名英国移民的两个和女儿的妈妈。作者讨论了培养，盟友，身份和更多的广泛访谈。苹果beplay
这次采访一直被凝聚和轻微编辑。
How did you decide to write this book together?
Laura：我对中学小说有一个松散的想法Citizen Mom, about a girl who wanted to help her mother through thecitizenship process。但我意识到，我对第一代美国的观点并不包括没有出生于美国的人的经验是我对这个故事合作的第一选择作者。她不仅筹集第一代美国的孩子，我很佩服她的写作和活动。我向萨迪亚推出了这个想法，我们开始开发人物和绘图。
Saadia: Writing stories about first-generation kids and the citizenship experience was important to me, especially since it’s my own story. I became a U.S. citizen in 2016, a few months before thepresidential electionthat year. It was a milestone for me and my family in many ways.
Throughout the book, while grappling with the reality that there are those around her who are blatantly anti-Muslim, Sara herself exhibits some shame and embarrassment at being Muslim. Saadia, did you have a similar experience when you were her age?
Saadia：我在巴基斯坦长大，几乎每个人都在哪里是穆斯林。I never felt out of place or attacked in any way. It was only when I came to the U.S. as an adult that I saw the world with different eyes. I saw racism, Islamophobia,仇外心理等等，这一切都在我身边。我并不是说它在其他地方不存在，而是直到那时我从来都不是必要的。萨拉的经历在桌子上的一个地方are more reflective of my children’s lives than my own.
有些方法是少数民族的人可以感到骄傲他们的遗产而不会被它的疏远？
Laura: Sharing that heritage with friends or a community is important. Going toHebrew schoolwith a handful of school friends made me feel less alienated as a kid.
Saadia：作为一个作者，我让自己可以全年的许多学校访问，个人和虚拟。这让我可以与我的所有背景的读者互动，但特别允许我与尊重我在宗教或文化方面识别我的读者联系。穆斯林的孩子或移民孩子可以跟我说话，感受骄傲，自信和幸福感。
There’s an intense scene in the book when a character says something racist. But another character, Stephanie,steps in并说：“你不能说这样的东西。”这真的震惊了我 - 很难坚持欺负，特别是你是朋友的欺负。您可以给出类似情况的孩子的建议？他们怎样才能找到斯蒂芬妮所做的勇气？
Laura：斯蒂芬妮的特点是受欢迎的，很受欢迎，拥有占主导地位文化的所有特权。因为斯蒂芬妮是一个社会货币的女孩，她有权力to speak up和正确的伊丽莎白的朋友,曼迪。没有沙ring any spoilers, it isn’t until Maddy begins to appreciate Sara’s mother — as a person, not a stereotype — that she begins to change.
Saadia: It’s definitely hard to stick up for someone against a bully, whether they’re a child or an adult. That’s one of the reasons we wrote this book: to offer a roadmap to readers关于allyship.。It’s really important in this day and age to not stand by quietly when something terrible is being said, because it escalates the situation and makes thebullying更差。我对孩子们的建议是互相谈论这些问题，有一个关于你要说的内容的计划，并在发生欺凌时告诉成年人。
这本书有几个偶然的人说，人们会说最终侮辱的错误。你如何建议孩子们解决其他孩子，甚至成年人，在这种情况下？
Saadia: I think we can get a little more educated about what is hurtful or not, and that comes through reading, asking questions, and learning from each other. It’s always OK to ask why something is offensive, as long as you do so in a respectful manner.
Laura：我们试图在许多场景中模拟这些无意的微磁性。
在今天的政治气氛中，当仇外心理和反动脉主义都在崛起时，你建议孩子们如何解决他们自己父母这样的信仰的朋友？
Laura：这是一个棘手的问题。我在高中有一个朋友，因为宗教原因，相信我要下地狱。无论我们对此有多少谈话或争论，他都紧紧抓住这种信念。所以，我会说孩子很清楚，那种仇恨的言论antisemitism isnot only wrong, it’s also personally harmful. But I’d also say that it’s OK for kids to put up a boundary there if the other person continues to use hate speech.
Saadia: I always suggest talking to your friends and explaining why something is harmful. If nothing else works, it may be time to remove yourself from a friendship. Sara and Elizabeth in the book offer a great way to do this tactfully in the way they treat Maddy.
您对父母读到这一点的父母有什么建议，他们想要提高周到，善良和开放的孩子？
Saadia：父母应该先拥有这种心态。读到今天影响世界的问题，首先致力于自己工作。如果您正在尝试自己思考和善良，您的孩子将遵循您的脚步，而不会讲道。我让它成为日常做法和我的孩子谈谈关于重要主题。我们一起观看新闻，讨论政治和社会主题等等。这使我的孩子能够了解对我来说重要的事情，并弥补他们如何生活的生活。
Laura：我最好的建议是模特，体贴，善良和开放。而且还要和孩子谈谈犯了一个错误and say or do something that’s hurtful to another person. Discuss what happened, how you attempted to fix it, and what you learned from the experience.
Header image by QZB Photography/Clarion Books/Laura Joy Burke
