Sabrena Swept Away

Gr 4-7–After relocating from Brooklyn to Richmond, VA, to help care for her grandmother, Sabrena Bhuiyan feels unmoored; disconnected from her friends, her old life, and the deep storytelling bond she once shared with Grandma, whose dementia is worsening. When a mysterious indoor flood carries her into a dreamlike version of The Thousand and One Nights, Sabrena must navigate a world of jinn, sinking kingdoms, and shifting time to uncover the story that will carry her home. Riazi blends contemporary family drama with folkloric fantasy in a lyrical, emotionally layered tale. Sabrena’s grief and anxiety are rendered with care, as is her longing to live up to her grandmother’s storytelling gift. The fantasy elements—Marjana as Ali Baba’s sharp-witted adopted daughter, a sentient sea kingdom, and a cursed prince—are evocative if sometimes diffuse. The pacing lags after the powerful opening, and some connections (such as Sabrena’s lineage and the rules of the magical world) remain vague. Still, the central metaphor shines: that storytelling holds power to heal, preserve memory, and guide transformation. Sabrena is Bangladeshi and Black, and cultural specificity runs throughout, from family dynamics to her experiences at an Islamic school. Riazi’s prose is lush and sensory, especially in depicting watery thresholds and shifting realms.