Million Star Hotel, the delightful sequel to Through a Mud Wall, by Rana Azzoubi, is a charming children's book that explores the ways in which friendship can bridge all differences. Nadia, a young Jordanian girl, is excited to have an American visitor, Joey, a 10-year-old American boy. The children and their parents all go on an exciting camping trip in Wadi Rum, a desert in the South of Jordan, but soon become separated from their parents and lost in an adventure. Only by relying on each other can the two children find their way back. Beautifully written and magically told, Million Star...

Rana Azzoubi's new book, Through a Mud Wall, is a gripping and fun story about four children, living in the country of Jordan, who embark on an adventure bigger than they could have ever imagined. Nadia and Walid, typical of their age, delight in being with their friends, keeping secrets from adults, and discovering new places. During a family get-together, on their grandfather's mountain farm, they join with their two cousins to explore a cave, which the farm-keeper had warned them to stay away from. After mischievously fooling the adults, they manage to get inside the cave, where they...