It’s World Book Day! And it got me wondering…if I had to dress up as a character from an Islamic children’s book, what would it be? You’ve probably guessed from the title: I would (try to!) dress like the spider from The Wondrous Web.

Which leads me to kick-start our reviews of books by other people…

The Wondrous Web, by Razana Noor

‘At last!’ That’s the phrase that I shouted out in my head once I read this.

Sister Razana has successfully taken a Qur’an story and made it engaging and easy to understand for children, [ma shaa Allah]. The book uses rhymes to tell the tale of the spider which was fortunate to have witnessed our Prophet Muhammed (saw) and by Allah’s favour, help him and Abu Bakr (ra) when they were fleeing their enemies. But that’s not where this story begins! What I found so captivating about this book was the clever way the spider has been given a backstory. I won’t spoil it for anyone who hasn’t read this yet: I’m sure it will make you smile too!

The cute drawings by Rahima Begum illustrate the story as it progresses, offering lots of detail for adults and children to get engrossed in. There is a little sideshow of beetles which is entertaining too!

Other thoughtful aspects of the book are the dua at the end and some fun facts about spiders. This helps the book become more interactive and prolong the reading/discussion time for older children. I can imagine the book leading to other activities in the home or school setting.

I can’t wait for my boys to be old enough to follow the story through without tearing or nibbling on the pages!

In short, a wonderful book to add to any mini Muslim’s bookshelf!

This is an independent review – it has not been endorsed by the author. We at Precious Bees simply want to share the great books available to our mini Muslims by creators other than ourselves! If you would like to purchase the book click here.