PRESS KIT

SHORT BIO

Rhonda Roumani is a Syrian American journalist who has written about Islam, the Arab world and Muslim-American issues for more than two decades. She is a Contributing Fellow at the Center for Religion and Civic Culture at USC, and an affiliate of Yale’s MacMillan Center Council on Middle East Studies. In 2021, she was selected as a Highlights Foundation Muslim Storyteller Fellow. She is the author of the Upper Middle Grade book Tagging Freedom, which was chosen as an Indies Introduce and a Kids’ Indies Nextselection by the American Booksellers Association. She is also the author of the picture book Insha’Allah, No, Maybe So (May 2024, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection); and a non-fiction picture book, Umm Kulthum: Star of the East (2025). Rhonda graduated with a MS in Journalism from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and received her BA in English and Political Science from UCLA. In her free time, Rhonda likes to spend time with family and friends, take long walks, cook communally, and watch Turkish and Korean dramas. She lives with her husband and two children in New Haven, CT.

TAGGING FREEDOM

Syrian-American journalist Rhonda Roumani’s debut TAGGING FREEDOM (On Sale 11/7/23) is a riveting tale of young activism, family bonds, and Syria. Kareem Haddad of Damascus, Syria, never dreamed of becoming a graffiti artist. But when a group of boys from another town tag subversive revolutionary slogans outside their school, and another boy is killed while in custody, Kareem and his friends are inspired and start secretly tagging messages of freedom around their city. Meanwhile, in the United States, his cousin, Samira, has been trying to make her own mark. Anxious to fit in at school, she joins the Spirit Squad where her natural artistic ability attracts the attention of the popular squad leader. Then Kareem is sent to live with Sam’s family, and their worlds collide. As graffitied messages appear around town and all eyes turn to Kareem, Sam must make a choice: does she shy away to protect her new social status, or does she stand with Kareem?

Rhonda Roumani’s work in Syria at the eve of the Arab Spring inspired her to write this captivating middle grade story about the birth of this movement, the young people who demanded their voices be heard, and Syrian-American identity.

Highlights 

YOUNG ACTIVISM: From Malala Yousafzai to Greta Thunberg to local protestors around the world, young people are engaged and using their voices to advocate for change in their communities. This book captures kids being inspired to move out of their comfort zone and become young activists. 

IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE: Stories of new immigrants are growing in popularity in the middle grade space, and are especially timely with the growing influx of young immigrants. 

SYRIAN-AMERICAN STORY: This is an accessible portrayal of the Syrian-American experience, and speaks directly also to the growing market for Muslim-American stories.

INFORMED DEBUT: Rhonda Roumani’s work as a journalist writing about Muslim-American issues inspired her middle grade debut and makes her an especially informed fiction writer.