Avi and Ahmed Play Football in Jerusalem’s Sacher Park

What happens when two boys--one Jewish, one Muslim--play football together in Jerusalem amidst the challenging political environment that surrounds them? Friendship.This is the story of these two boys Avi and Ahmed, along with their families, who bond together. But when Ahmed doesn’t show up for Avi's birthday party, Avi assumes the worst. Their story provides hope for the reader that anything is possible when people care about each other.

Inas Younis was born in Mosul, Iraq and emigrated to the United States as a child in 1982. An independent journalist and commentator, Inas writes on religion and politics for various magazines and websites. She is the co-founder of the first chapter of the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom in Kansas City and served on the board of this national organization, based in New Jersey. She is an alumna of the American Muslim Civic Leadership Institute at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. In the realm of civic leadership, Inas currently serves on the board of the KCPublic theatre which provides access to the arts through year-round theatre entertainment free of charge to the public. Inas is an active member of People of Faith for Peace, a Kansas A city-based interfaith initiative that is dedicated to highlighting the power of the religious community to resolve conflicts and promote mutual respect and understanding.Kerry Olitzky, an ordained rabbi, was named one of the leading fifty rabbis of North America by Newsweek. He is the former longtime executive director of Big Tent Judaism (formerly Jewish Outreach Institute) and served on the faculty and administration of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City. He is the author of over 75 books and hundreds of articles in a variety of fields including spirituality, healing and religious practice. His most recent children’s books are Where’s the Potty on this Ark? and The Littlest Candle: A Hanukkah Story.About the Illustrator:Leticia Saad graduated from the University of Buenos Aires, School of Architecture Design and Urbanism (Buenos Aires, Argentina), with the title of Industrial Designer. She had a passion for drawing and painting throughout her entire life which enabledher to work as an illustrator since 2012. She is now both a freelance illustrator and a teacher.