Compassion was written and illustrated by grade 5 students working last year with teachers Deb Solice and Aaron Reed. It is a story about children, by children and for children. They worked after school for a year to craft a story that was relevant to their lives.

The student authors and illustrators included: Ben Lemoing, Grace Tombleson, Haelin Kim and Tilde Jacobsen. Student contributors included Athaya Putri, Soleyman Theilmann-Gohr, Cedric Steigler and Andrew Coble.

It is a special book because it honors two children from different cultures who become friends. As a result of their bond, the American girl learns about Qatar, the country where she has come to live with her family. This is a story not dissimilar from that of many of our students at the American School of Doha.

It is also a special book because the authors and illustrators wanted the proceeds from sales to be donated to a worthy charity. The proceeds from the sale of this book will go to the Alfaisal Without Borders Foundation (AFL) which is a non-profit humanitarian organization founded by His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Bin Faisal Al-Thani. The Foundation, along with ASD teachers of Arabic, translated the book into Arabic so that it could have the widest audience possible.

The funding for the publication of this book was made possible by the American School of Doha Global Citizenship Fund, which exists to empower students to be positive, active, global citizens. The book is available now for QR100 and is obtainable directly from the Elementary office. Any additional information please e-mail compassion@asd.edu.qa .