CALLING ALL YOUNGSTERS yearning for travel, adventure, mystery and suspense; eager to plunge up-close and personal into some of history's weird and hidden roads and the strange and varied ways of different lands and peoples...There's a new friend for you out there in book land, and he is a good guy to get to know. Meet Ahmad Deen, one interesting young Muslim; and tighten those seat belts! Ahmad Deen just seems to stumble upon the most extraordinary and dangerous adventures as sure as iron hits a magnet!

For one thing, Ahmad is a lively young man, full of ideas and curiosity; his brain is always alert. And with the mind-boggling puzzles young Deen falls into, he needs every bit of clear thinking and problem -solving acumen he can muster. For another thing, Ahmad is a nice fellow; friendly and talkative, a helper and a sharer, always responsive to people: their needs, their dreams, their lives no matter how different from his. That's not to say Ahmad is blanket perfect, or foolish. There are people Ahmad does not like at all, and he confesses it readily (his reasons are usually pretty good!). With this kind of open and dynamic heart, it is inevitable that Ahmad will meet up with a fascinating array of humans ( and some nasty specimens too).

There is another facet to young Deen that makes him an invaluable and delightful companion: he is "real," and he's good. Ahmad is a regular guy, not a super-hero. He's bright and a talented student - but do not think for a minute that he is stuffy. Ahmad is a normal kid. First and foremost, Ahmad is a believer, a serious and devoted Muslim. He always relies on Allah (SWT), always trusts in Allah and the shining way of Islam and its Messenger - but do not think for a moment that Ahmad will be content to sit back and wait helplessly when danger strikes or the situation gets really tricky, Not Ahmad Deen! This youth relies on his good sense, his ingenuity, his reasoning and deduction, his mental stock of learning and education to unlock the deadlocks.

To succeed, Ahmad Deen will use every tool at his fingertips, from cutting edge science to wildly creative thinking. And he has got his work cut out. As noted, A. Deen often faces a hair-raising thicket of evils and evil ways, assorted bad guys, absurdities, cruel jinn and man-made monsters. Can he defeat them?

Young Ahmad Deen comes from the imaginative and impressive pen of a writer who is at the forefront in forging new and realistic Muslim literature for this country and time, Yahiya Emerick.  Br. Emerick has set out to create, with other young Muslim writers, a true body of books for the Muslim reader of America. This is thus American literature and it is Muslim too. And with the top-notch Ahmad Deen series, Emerick is launching what is bound to become a much-beloved classic of succeeding generations of young people for years to come.

What is new and intriguing about Ahmad and his adventures is , first of all, they are grounded in reality, in real life. The language is direct and up to date, appealing in its realism. The profiles of characters and settings are true to life, jumping off the page in lively naturalness. Fine psychological human portraits give the tales a pulsating, documentary feel.

Ahmad lives in the real world, not in utopia, dreamland or fairy tale. Ahmad is a straight talker, a still impetuous teen. His interests are the interests of our youths. He is a sports fan, bursting with energy. Watch out for his Kung Fu skills, refined and explained to him at the famed warrior-monk temple of Shaolin. But because this is also life viewed from our knowledge and belief, Ahmad Deen will encounter more than the "seen" in his journeys. Thus, does Yahiya Emerick also shows how Muslim Realism does not mean "materialism."

The scope of the writing, in the two stories in print so far, also opens keenly stimulating avenues for young readers. Aspects of human history, of unfamiliar or remote ethnic groups or civilizations are explored deftly, part and parcel of Ahmad's heart-pounding adventures themselves. Informational rather than "educational," the learning comes easy, at Ahmad's pace and tempo.

The Aztec Warrior takes us to the country at our borders, Mexico, the native land of so many of our neighbors right here in North America. They too must come to Islam, as all people must. One of the delights of the Aztec tale is the occasional use of conversational Spanish: perhaps the beginning, for a young Muslim reader, of a life- long involvement with languages, or a specific direction in dawah. (Yahiya Emerick is also a leading teacher and trainer in the new direction in dawah, the wider apertures to all peoples sharing this continent).

What Ahmad Deen ultimately learns about himself and human beings, about life and growth, about inner power within Islam is finally the most precious lesson of all. As we accompany him through Muslim communities in China, we too experience that extraordinary brotherhood that

links us inside Islam, to the far flung corners of the Earth. As always with Emerick's imprints by IBTS, elegant artistry and detail, in stunning illustrations chosen by the author, add to the liveliness and delight in the reading (the mysteries, by the way, are well sustained, exciting to the very last). Ahmad Deen is fresh, new and terrific. And it is fun.

A youngster need not be Muslim to become an enduring Ahmad Deen fan. The author offers judicious details on Islam and our Muslim belief and practice to guide any non-Muslim toward familiarity with Islam. The remembrance of Allah (SWT) and His guidance and help are never far from the action and the actors in these tales. Islam is always squarely within the frame.

Hint: the mystery at Shaolin revolves around the riddle of "a heart of gold" and "the sign of good in one's hand." We will say no more. Jump in and help Ahmad solve the riddle. The adventure is just beginning.

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