Small Readers, Real Shelves: Finding Arabic Children’s Fiction in Britain

The email usually goes something like this: ‘My daughter is six, we’re in Leeds, and I’d like her to see Arabic on a shelf that isn’t a textbook. Where do I start?’ The honest answer is that Britain is not yet an easy place to buy Arabic children’s fiction. The better answer is that it is no longer a closed shop. You do not need to speak Arabic, live in London, or know a specialist importer. You need a library card, a few publisher names, and a willingness to ask for the right thing.

First, untangle the label

‘Arabic children’s books’ in the UK means at least three different things. There are books translated from Arabic into English, bilingual Arabic–English editions, and diaspora stories written in English by Arab authors. All three are useful. They are not the same. A bilingual board book does one job; a translated middle-grade fantasy does another; a picture book about a Syrian family in Manchester does a third. If you are building a first shelf, start with bilingual picture books and translated chapter books. Young adult fiction is thinner, and often arrives through UK indies rather than big general publishers.

The library is the cheapest door

Public libraries remain the most underused route into Arabic children’s fiction. Ask for the ‘community language’ collection rather than ‘foreign language books’ — that is the phrase many library services use. In cities with established Arab communities, including Birmingham, Manchester, Bradford, Leicester and several London boroughs such as Ealing and Westminster, you will often find a small shelf. It may be tucked away in the children’s section or held in storage. Ask anyway.

If your local branch has nothing, you can request a purchase. Librarians are used to buying for local demand, and a specific request — title, publisher, ISBN — is far more persuasive than a general suggestion. Interlibrary loans can also bring children’s books from another authority. In 2026 most catalogues are online, but search carefully: try ‘Arabic’ with ‘juvenile’ or ‘children’, and do not assume the English title is the only one listed.

Publishers worth knowing

A handful of UK publishers are doing the quiet work here. Neem Tree Press, a small independent, has brought translated Palestinian fiction for young readers into English, including Sonia Nimr’s Thunderbird and Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands — check the age guidance, as the books sit across middle grade and older readers. Tiny Owl and Lantana publish diverse picture books that are not always Arabic-specific but help normalise a wider shelf. Mantra Lingua produces dual-language Arabic–English books that schools often use. Kube Publishing and the Islamic Foundation publish children’s books with Islamic themes, some of them fiction; useful, but not the same as Arabic-language fiction. Darf Publishers and Saqi Books are mainly adult imprints, though their catalogues are worth watching.

Some excellent Arabic children’s publishers are based abroad — Kalimat in the UAE, for example, or Hoopoe in Egypt. Your local independent bookshop can often order them through a UK wholesaler such as Gardners. You do not have to import them yourself unless you want a specific edition quickly.

How to build a shelf without fluency

You do not need to read Arabic to make Arabic books feel ordinary at home. Choose bilingual editions, wordless picture books, and stories where the pictures carry plenty of the meaning. Read the English aloud and let the Arabic sit alongside it. Do not turn the shelf into homework. If you do speak Arabic, read both languages; if you do not, say so. ‘I don’t know this word yet — let’s find out’ is a better lesson than pretending.

Keep the books at child height, mixed in with everything else. A single Arabic–English board book next to the bedtime stories does more than a shelf kept for special occasions.

A small starter list, by age

For picture-book readers, The Day Saida Arrived is a gentle story about a Moroccan girl finding her feet in a new country. The Arabic Quilt follows an Egyptian-American child, and The Cat Man of Aleppo is a Syrian-set picture book that many UK libraries already hold. These are a mix of translations and diaspora stories, so check the imprint page if you specifically want a book translated from Arabic.

For middle grade, Sonia Nimr’s translated Palestinian fantasies are the obvious place to begin. For older readers, Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga is a Syrian-American verse novel that has found a wide UK readership. Availability shifts, so treat any list as a starting point rather than a fixed canon.

For teachers and carers

School libraries can order dual-language books, and many will if asked directly. The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education and BookTrust both publish diverse reading lists; use them, but check specifically for Arabic rather than assuming ‘diverse’ means ‘Arabic’. A school does not need a full Arabic collection to make a difference. Four or five well-chosen books in the reading corner can change what a child thinks a book is allowed to be.

Ordering without the runaround

Independent bookshops can order from Gardners, and Bookshop.org UK supports local shops. Publisher websites are often the simplest route for small presses. When ordering, check whether a book is bilingual or English-only, and note the ISBN. If you are buying from abroad, factor in postage and customs before you commit. And if money is tight, ask the library first. That is what it is for.

A first Arabic shelf does not begin with a collection. It begins with one book that a child can reach.