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Title: Watched
Author: Marina Budhos
Narrator: Sunil Malhotra
Format: Unabridged
Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
Language: English
Release date: 09-13-16
Publisher: Listening Library
Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 5 votes
Genres: Teens, Fiction & Literature

Publisher's Summary:
Marina Budhos' extraordinary and timely novel examines what it's like to grow up under surveillance, something many Americans experience and most Muslim Americans know.
Naeem is far from the model teen. Moving fast in his immigrant neighborhood in Queens is the only way he can outrun the eyes of his hardworking Bangladeshi parents and their gossipy neighbors. Even worse, they're not the only ones watching. Cameras on poles. Mosques infiltrated. Everyone knows: Be careful what you say and who you say it to. Anyone might be a watcher.
Naeem thinks he can charm his way through anything - until his mistakes catch up with him, and the cops offer a dark deal. Naeem sees a way to be a hero - a protector - like the guys in his brother's comic books. Yet what is a hero? What is a traitor? And where does Naeem belong?
Acclaimed author Marina Budhos delivers a riveting story that's as vivid and involving as today's headlines.

Critic Reviews:
"Budhos perfectly captures the gritty details of daily life in a Queens neighborhood, as well as the nuances of different immigrant groups." (School Library Journal)
"[Narrator Sunil] Malhotra fleshes out Naeem's fear, frustration and anger.... Malhotra sets the emotional tone so clearly that listeners understand why Naeem takes risks in this dangerous relationship. His innocence is just as clear...." (AudioFile)

Members Reviews:
Great book with a Muslim teen main character that ALL teens should read
Thanks to the @kidlitexchange network for the review copy of this book - all opinions are, as always, my own.
"We do have a choice. even if I do something bad, even if I do it because it helps my family, or me, it is my choice." I thought this book was a great look into how it must have felt like to be a Muslim teen in America shortly after 9/11. I don't believe I've ever read a book with a Muslim main character and I'm glad I was finally able to rectify that.
I think it's important to note that while I think this book is important for representation, I think there are lessons that would be applicable to any teen. The pressures of trying to be a better child but feeling like you're a failure are certainly not unique to Muslim teens, although being immigrants certainly make the situation a bit more complicated. I also think that anyone, not just teens, can relate to the struggle of what is the "right" thing to do in a situation.
Definitely planning to read more by Marina Budhos. This was a pretty quick read but it packed a punch.

It will cause readers to think about their own prejudices and, perhaps, make them think twice before passing judgment on others.
Naeem was 5 years old when his mother died and his father moved from Bangladesh to New York. He waited for his father to send for him, but it took another 6 years before he found himself on a plane to Queens, New York. There, he was reunited with his father and met his new little brother and stepmother.
He loved New York, spending years hanging out and roaming the streets instead of helping his parents in their little store. Itâs now his senior year of high school and he expects to go to college, but is told he canât graduate due to low grades. His future is staring at him bleakly until he gets arrested.
To avoid jail time he agreed to work undercover with cops, as they were sure terrorist attacks were being planned.