[Fiction] Zayd & Musa: The Trouble with Videos (The Story of Riya)

Islamic fiction paperback novel that is fun yet meaningful

• It’s ticklish!
• It’s written in an easy to read style!
• It’s totally unputdownable!
• It has a very important underlying message about Riya!
• It ultimately aims to connect children to the Quran and help them apply its teachings in real life.

About the Book

Zayd and Musa are stupefied at Isa’s new video channel. Is he going too far in his quest for fame? Will they pull him away from the murky land of fake videos before it’s too late?

Zayd & Musa series aims to connect children to the Quran in a practical yet engaging way. This book weaves the concept of Riya around a humorous story for children aged 8 and above.

A note for parents from the author

I originally titled this series “Living the Quran with Zayd & Musa”. My aim was to weave a story – a humourous story that children could enjoy and relate to – around the concepts that our beautiful Deen teaches us in the Quran.

While the children enjoy the shenanigans of Zayd and Musa, they also learn some important concepts taught in the Quran. The concept covered in this book is Riya – which has been explained as doing good deeds but not for Allah (swt). Riya is covered in the light of the digital age where every other child wants to be a TikToker or YouTuber but only for fame, money, followers, or a mixture of all three.

This book is an important conversation starter on the topic of WHY we as Mumins need to think extra hard before doing anything and not follow trends blindly. In the times we are living in, we witness people on social media doing all kinds of antics for attention seeking and followers, and it is important to discuss with children why this is not acceptable and why, even if they want to venture into the world of digital content creation, they have to think about whether they are doing it for worldly reasons or to attain Allah’s pleasure and Jannah

I have attempted to weave the concept of Riya around various plot points in this story and make it relatable to children of 8 years and above so the young readers don’t feel that they are being preached to.

Feedback is welcome!

You are welcome to share your feedback at editor@hibamagazine.com and help us improve the series. May Allah accept this humble endeavour. Ameen.