♪Music♪
>> Meg Medina: Today I am here 
with the fabulous Hena Khan, who is the
author of this book and this
book and this book.
Hena. Welcome to the Library
of Congress.
>> Hena Khan:
Thank you.
I'm so excited to be here with
you.
>> Meg Medina: So what book have 
you brought for me today?
>> Hena Khan: Yeah, I have an exciting 
debut by author Rhonda Roumani called
Tagging Freedom.
It features two cousins, Kareem
and Samira, who grow up in
different parts of the world.
Kareem's in Syria.
Samir is here in the U.S. and
they are forced together
suddenly when Kareem leaves
Syria at the very beginning of
the revolution.
But they have to learn a lot
about friendship and what it
means to be free, and what it
means to stand up and use your
voice for others, even those
who live far away.
>> Meg Medina: Oh my goodness. 
And it's a debut.
Meaning it's this author's
first book.
>> Hena Khan: Exactly. And she did 
such a beautiful job with it.
>> Meg Medina:
How did you discover her?
>> Hena Khan: So I was lucky 
enough to be paired with her in this
mentorship program.
So I got to read this book
early, and I was so impressed by
the depth and the voice and the
way she really translates these
big messages into a very
readable way.
And it's very, very inspiring.
>> Meg Medina: What's one of the 
messages that you feel like really stuck for
you inside this book?
>> Hena Khan: I think it's that young 
people really have more power than we
realize sometimes, to use their
voices to advocate for the
rights and freedoms of people
around the world, and they were
actually instrumental in
starting the Syrian revolution,
which was something I learned.
But, you know, young people
around the world, we see it all
the time are, you know, some of
the biggest proponents of rights
and freedoms. And I love the
way that message comes through.
>> Meg Medina: What were you 
like as a young reader?
>> Hena Khan:
I was a pretty voracious reader.
I was lucky that my mother was
a big pusher of books, and she
would take my family pretty
regularly to the public library,
and we would actually take bags
with us that we would fill up
with books. And that is a lot
of how I spend my free time as a
kid, especially during the
summer.
I didn't have too many camps or
activities, but I spent my time
reading. Always something new
in those bags.
Always something that I knew I
would love and return to over
and over again. I'm a big
reader of my favorites.
And yeah, and I read really
widely, which I think really
helped make me the writer and
storyteller I am today, that I
just tried so many different
types of books and loved them
all.
>> Meg Medina: Why do you think 
you reread books?
>> Hena Khan: Even though I knew 
what was going to happen, I think I just
loved the feeling of going back
into a book that I adored
getting to hang out with these
characters who kind of felt like
friends and and just the
comfort of it.
And I knew I was going to be
entertained and that I would
love it. And I think every time
you reread a book, you find
something new.
>> Meg Medina: So how is it that 
you would decide what to read as a kid?
>> Hena Khan: Yeah, I think like most kids,
you know, it was a matter of
wandering the shelves, you
know, looking at covers.
I had go to authors I loved,
Beverly Cleary and Judy Blume
and some others.
Um, as I got older, I got more
into fantasy, and I loved the
Tolkien series, but I think it
was a matter of what happened to
be nearby.
>> Meg Medina: Now, I happen to hear 
through the grapevine that you have a
book that you are a big
proponent of libraries, which is
wonderful. Me too.
Um, but you've written a book
about the oldest library.
So what is where is the oldest
library?
What is this book? Tell me a
little bit about it.
>> Hena Khan: It's called Behind My Doors, 
and it's based on the oldest
continually operating library
which is in Fez, Morocco.
Al-qarawiyyin library, which
was actually founded by a woman,
Fatima al-Fihri, back in the
800.
And I just loved the story of,
you know, a woman dreaming up
the idea of the library, but
then also saving this library
and.
>> Meg Medina:
Bringing, is it a picture book?
>> Hena Khan:
It is a picture book.
So about these, you know, told
from the perspective of the
library itself, actually.
>> Meg Medina:
So the library is a character.
>> Hena Khan: The main library is 
the one narrating its own story.
>> Meg Medina: I love the corners of 
the world that you are writing about how
you write Pakistani families in
a way that feels very true to
the reality of Pakistani
families, and also relatable to
everybody's family.
So what's the magic in that?
What is your secret sauce?
How do you do it?
>> Hena Khan:
You know, we all love a flaky
pastry, right?
We know the joy of that,
whether it's an empanada or a
samosa or a tart, you know?
And so I think a lot of times,
adding those very specific
details about a culture, about
food, about dress, about the
scent of something can really
draw a reader in, but make them
feel like they're there.
But also many times realize
that what they're reading feels
very familiar.
Um, and something that they,
they can absolutely imagine or
even have experienced
themselves.
>> Meg Medina: I also love the books 
that you write that are very focused on
the lives of girls.
Um, you know, I'm a big fan of
writing the lives of girls.
And so, um, do you have, like,
a type of girl that you like to
write most?
Is there a something about the
lives of girls that really
interests you as a writer, that
you like to sort of unpack in
your writing?
>> Hena Khan: I like writing about 
the girls who maybe aren't the most
outspoken or the most
confident, the most popular, and
maybe the ones who are a little
bit underestimated, even by
themselves. Um, what some
people call the quiet girls.
But my characters aren't quiet.
They're just maybe not, as, you
know, as much of a force as some
of the other girls we see in
books.
But I love being able to
represent these girls and and
they're all passionate in their
own ways about their families,
about their friends, about
whatever it is they're
interested in, you know, to do
with themselves in the world.
Um, but I think there's so much
room for these girls to have so
much heart and and humanity and
hopefully relatability.
And I hope so many other girls
will see themselves in these
characters.
>> Meg Medina: So when did you decide
that you wanted to be a writer?
Were you a kid when you decided
that or a grown up?
>> Hena Khan: I think I was always a 
writer at heart, you know, I was always
the kid who was writing stories
or a family newspaper, but it
was very private and personal,
even a family newspaper.
I didn't have a readership,
but, um, but I think even though
I was a pretty active writer as
a kid, I didn't feel comfortable
or confident enough to call
myself a writer.
I really thought I needed some
sort of seal or award to say,
okay, you are a writer, and I
love telling kids that if you
write, you are a writer.
You don't need to wait for
someone to anoint you to be a
writer or give you permission
to write.
>> Meg Medina: It has been so beautiful 
to have you here with me at the library.
Thanks for coming today, and I
just can't wait to see all the
different things that you are
writing.