Muhammad Najem, War Reporter

Description

A teenage boy risks his life to tell the truth in this gripping graphic memoir by youth activist Muhammad Najem and CNN producer Nora Neus. Muhammad Najem was only eight years old when the war in Syria began. He was thirteen when his beloved Baba, his father, was killed in a bombing while praying. By fifteen, Muhammad didn’t want to hide anymore—he wanted to act. He was determined to reveal what families like his were enduring in Syria: bombings by their own government and days hiding in dark underground shelters.
 
Armed with the camera on his phone and the support of his family, he started reporting on the war using social media. He interviewed other kids like him to show what they hope for and dream about. More than anything, he did it to show that Syrian kids like his toddler brother and infant sister, were just like kids in any other country. Despite unimaginable loss, Muhammad was always determined to document the humanity of the Syrian people. Eventually, the world took notice.
 
This tenderly illustrated graphic memoir is told by Muhammad himself along with CNN producer Nora Neus, who helped break Muhammad’s story and bring his family’s plight to an international audience.
  Muhammad Najem is an internationally recognized journalist from Eastern Ghouta, Syria. He began his reporting career as a child, under near-constant bombardment by the Assad regime, by taking videos on his cheap cell phone and posting them on social media. His story went viral in 2018, putting a target on his and his family’s backs. In 2019, he and his family fled Syria and moved to Turkey. Muhammad loves video games, association football, hanging out with friends, and playing with his little brother and sister. He invites you to visit him at muhammadnajem.comNora Neus is an Emmy-award nominated journalist and writer living in Brooklyn, New York. She has reported from inside a maximum-security prison, from 14,000 feet above sea level in the San Juan Mountains, and from rural Puerto Rico after devastating earthquakes. Nora studied the Syrian conflict for her MA in War Studies from King’s College London. She started her journalism career as a child, writing a newspaper called Neus News for her family and friends. She invites you to visit her at noraneus.com.