About
Khadijah VanBrakle is a Muslim woman of color. She writes Contemporary Young Adult stories, with characters, like her three daughters, who are both Black American and Muslim. She is represented by literary agent Kristina Perez of Perez Literary & Entertainment Ltd.
In Sept 2021, Khadijah was chosen as one of the Highlights Foundation's Muslim Storytellers Fellows and is an Admin member of Black Creators HQ. She's active in the NM chapter of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators and has been a member for ten years.
Featured Work
Fatima Tate Takes the Cake
Fatima Tate wants to be a baker AND enjoy some innocent flirting with her hot friend Raheem—but her strict Muslim parents would never approve of either…
Seventeen-year-old Fatima Tate, aspiring baker (100% against her conservative parents’ wishes), leads a pretty normal life in Albuquerque: long drives with BFF Zaynab, weekly services at the mosque, big family parties, soup kitchen volunteering (the best way to perfect her flaky dough recipe!), stressing about college. But everything changes when she meets a charming university student named Raheem. Knowing the ‘rents would FREAK, Fatima keeps their burgeoning relationship a secret… and then, one day, her parents and his parents decide to arrange their marriage. Amazing! True serendipity!
Except it’s not amazing. As soon as the ring is on Fatima’s finger, Raheem’s charm transforms into control and manipulation. Fatima knows she has to call the whole thing off, but Raheem doesn’t like to lose. He threatens to reveal their premarital sexual history and destroy her and her family’s reputation in their tight-knit Muslim community. Fatima must find the inner strength to blaze her own trail by owning her body, her choices, and her future. Combining the frank authenticity of Elizabeth Acevedo and the complex social dynamics of Ibi Zoboi, FATIMA TATE TAKES THE CAKE is a powerful coming-of-age story that gives a much-needed voice to young Black Muslim women.
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
Other Works
Awards and Recognition
- 2024 NAACP Image Award Finalist for Outstanding Youth/Teens Literature; Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection; National Federation of Press Women 2024 Professional Communications YA Contest Winner; NM Press Women's 2024 Communications YA Contest Winner; NMBA's 2024 Southwest Book Design Award Finalist;
