Atiyah Brinkley (in garbing) and attendees at last Wednesday’s event. (Photo: Deesarine Ballayan)

Young Friends of Wyck gathered community members last Wednesday evening, Nov. 12, at the Stenton House for an ode to Black Muslim girlhood in the form of a film screening and book talk that put a special highlight on local teen fiction author, Atiyah Brinkley.

Brinkley is the author of “Flower Child,” which follows the main character Aleena, who is struggling with starting high school after the death of her father. She then meets a boy named Zayn, who tries to help her overcome her depression and strengthen her faith.

“When I wrote Aleena, I wanted to write her as one of my good girlfriends,” said Brinkley, during her presentation, where she also read an excerpt of the book. 

While detailing more about the main character, Brinkley admitted that Aleena is a different version of herself. She also shared that the idea for the name Flower Child was inspired by the 1960s hippie era, and because Aleena loves flowers. 

The author reflected on her writing journey, saying it started with fiction at the age of seven. As she reached high school, she said subjects like English and Creative Writing really shaped her love for books.

“I think my mom also played a role because she loves books as well and she always took me to the library,” said Brinkley. “I became a library kid.” 

Brinkley says readers might be surprised that the book features practicing Muslims, claiming that other Muslim authors tend to leave out parts of the faith.

“People tend to water down the religion or don’t show an accurate representation,” said Brinkley. 

She says readers may also be surprised that Aleena is an imperfect Muslim.

Young Friends of Wyck organizer Stephanye Watts put together the event to uplift Young Friends group member Brinkley. And Watts also claimed it was a way to pay homage to Black Muslim culture in Philly — a gesture that makes a lot of sense given Germantown’s large Black Muslim population.

“So much of Black culture in Philly is tied to Muslim culture,” said Watts.

She gives an example, pointing back as far as her high school days, with phrases like, “I gotta be on my deen,” a similar sentiment to being on your P’s and Q’s.

The Young Friends organizer says the event also fills a timely need for social discourse.

She said, “There’s so much Islamophobia… [and] we don’t have many stories amplifying the experiences of Black Muslim women.”

Brinkley agreed, saying, “The Muslim teenagers don’t have books; there are some, but not a lot, so I wanted to solve that problem.”

The majority of the attendees were young Black girls from the youth leadership organization Bringing Everybody Together (BET) who seemed eager to share their experiences with Brinkley. 

“We talked about ways to deal with our mental health, like listening to music,” said Zalah Christian, BET member, reflecting on the conversation. 

Brinkley claims she wrote the book for this exact reason she wrote her book. Brinkley admitted to struggling with her own mental health, and writing this book served as an escape for her. 

“I just want people to understand that just because they are teenagers doesn’t mean they’re not going through anything,” said Brinkley. “They go through stuff with their mental health, their social life… When parents read the book, they get a better understanding of their kids.” 

The youth from BET were accompanied by their facilitator, Diamond Brown, who says her youth are lucky to have these kinds of spaces and books that can relate to their lives. 

“I would have loved to have a discussion like this when I was younger,” said Brown, “The adults in your life never seemed to understand that you have your own problems and never want to teach you how to deal with your emotions, so this was nice for them.” 

Looking to the future, Brinkley is currently working on her second book from the perspective of Aleena’s love interest, Zayn. 

Flower Child is available for purchase through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and more. Neighbors can also find a copy at the Joseph E. Coleman Library.

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