Samira Ahmed, author portrait
© Thomas Jones

Samira Ahmed

Samira Ahmed was born in Bombay, India, and grew up in a small town in Illinois in a house that smelled like fried onions, cardamom, and potpourri. A graduate of the University of Chicago, she taught high school English, helped create dozens of small high schools, and fought to secure billions of additional dollars to fairly fund public schools. She's lived in Vermont, Chicago, New York City, and Kauai, where she spent a year searching for the perfect mango. Love, Hate & Other Filters is her first novel.
Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know
Love, Hate and Other Filters

Books

Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know
Love, Hate and Other Filters

Mental Health Awareness Month Resources

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and educators are increasingly aware that integrating social-emotional learning into the curriculum is critical if we want students to succeed both in and out of the classroom. Download the thematic educator guides on Teaching About Anxiety and Mindfulness and Teaching About Student Wellness. Explore our specially curated collections on

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Books for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Each May, we honor the stories, histories, and cultures of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Below is a selection of acclaimed fiction and nonfiction books by AANHPI creators to share with your students this month and throughout the year. AANHPI Creators – Middle School titles AANHPI Creators – High School titles .

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Author’s Note: Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know by Samira Ahmed

Dear Reader, This story is fiction. But it also tells the truth. All stories start with a seed and for me that seed was planted years ago when I first crossed paths with Lord Byron’s epic poem, The Giaour, along with his deeply ingrained Orientalism and sexism. In college, I took a class that centered around

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