Set In the Middle East

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fiction

 

Carmi, Daniella. Samir And Yonatan. 2000. (YA Fiction Carmi.D)

A young Palestinian boy lies terrified and trapped in an Israeli hospital—but what if the Israelis are not as bad as he thinks?

Jolin, Paula. In The Name Of God. 2007. (YA Fiction Jolin.P)

Jolin's first novel, set in present-day Syria, explores the hatred that young people feel towards Americans. Nadia, a respectable hijabi girl, lives in Damascus, where she fasts, prays, reads the Quran and covers her head. But after a cousin is arrested she feels compelled to fight.

Kass, Pnina. Real Time : A Novel. 2004. (YA Fiction Kass.P)

Young Thomas Wanninger, seeking to discover what his Nazi grandfather did during World War II, goes to Israel to work on a kibbutz and perhaps gain access to archival information in Jerusalem. But his plans are thwarted by a terrorist attack on the day he arrives.

Levitin, Sonia. The Singing Mountain. 1998. (YA Fiction Levit.S)

Newly observant Mitch decides to stay on in Israel to study in the Yeshiva, much to his family's disapproval.

Marsten, Elsa. Santa Claus In Baghdad And Other Stories About Teens In The Arab World. 2008. (YA Fiction Marst.E)

What’s it like to be a young person in the Arab world today? This engaging collection of eight short stories about Arab teenagers (in Iraq, Tunisia, Egypt, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and a Palestinian refugee camp) reveals the Middle Eastern teen experience.

Nye, Naomi Shihab. Habibi. 1999. (YA Ficton Nye.N)

Fourteen-year old Arab-American Liyana has enjoys her new life in Jerusalem, but what will her parents say about her Jewish friend?

Qashu, Sayed. Let It Be Morning. 2006. (YA Fiction Qashu.S)

An Israeli Arab journalist returns from Tel Aviv to his home village with his wife and daughter. One morning the Israelis cordon off the town, and it descends into infighting, suspicion, and ancient feuds, revealing fault lines in the Arab community.

Schami, Rafik. A Hand Full Of Stars. 1990. (J Scham.R)

In modern-day Damascus, a teenage boy finds the courage to challenge the political system through creating a subversive newspaper.

 

Non-Fiction

 

Baraket, Ibtisam. Tasting The Sky : A Palestinian Childhood. 2007. (YA 956.94053 Barak.I)

In a powerfully written memoir, Barakat captures what it is like to be a child whose world is shattered by war.

Boudalika, Litsa (ed.). If You Could Be My Friend : Letters Of Mervet Akram Sha'ban And Galit Fink. 1998. (x956.9405 Shaba.M)

The actual letters of a Palestinian teen and her Israeli pen pal reveal their fears and hopes, similarities and differences. (See also the reference below to the book by Rifa’i.)

Cohn-Sherbok, Dan. The Palestine-Israeli Conflict : A Beginner's Guide. 2003. (956.04 Cohns.D 2003)

This best-selling introduction to the conflict analyzes its key issues, and includes the implications of war with Iraq.

Frank, Mitch. Understanding The Holy Land : Answering Questions About The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. 2005. (YA 956.9405 Frank.M)

This well-annotated book discusses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, how it began, what peace attempts have been made, and why peace is so difficult to attain.

Hampton, Wilborn. War In The Middle East : A Reporter's Story : Black September And The Yom Kippur War. 2007. (YA 956.04 Hampt.W)

Hampton offers a reporter’s-eye view of the 1970 “Black September” Jordanian civil war, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, and connects them to current events.

Mernissi, Fatima. Scheherazade Goes West : Different Cultures, Different Harems. 2001. (305.42 Merni.F)

Fatema Mernissi, the world-renowned Islamic feminist, sheds unprecedented light on the lives of women in the Middle East.

Nye, Naomi Shihab (ed.). The Space Between Our Footsteps : Poems And Paintings From The Middle East. 1998. (YA 808.81 Space)

Nye has compiled the works of more than one hundred poets and artists from nineteen countries in the Middle East. This rich anthology will open the young reader’s eyes to many cultures.

The Palestinians And The Disputed Territories. 2004. (YA 956.04 Palesti)

In point-counterpoint fashion, the essayists here explore the causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and consider peacemaking options. From Greenhaven Press’s “World’s Hot Spots” series.

Rifa’i, Amal and Odelia Ainbinder. We Just Want To Live Here : A Palestinian Teenager, An Israeli Teenager : An Unlikely Friendship. 2003. (YA 956.9442 Rifai.A)

An unsparing yet hopeful account of what it means to grow up in Jerusalem today as told through the candid exchange of letters between a Palestinian teenager and an Israeli teenager. (See also the reference above to the book by Boudalika.)

Watad, Mahmoud and Leonard Grob. Teen Voices From The Holy Land : Who Am I To You?. 2007. (YA 956.94054 Watad.M)

Based on interviews of thirty-four Palestinian and Israeli teenagers, this uplifting book presents candid, first-person narratives of their day-to-day lives.

Zenatti, Valerie. When I Was A Soldier : A Memoir. 2002. (YA B Zenat.V Zenat.V)

This story of one young woman’s experience in the Israeli national army is both topical and fascinating. Valerie begins her story as she finishes her exams, breaks up with her boyfriend, and leaves for military service. She is unprepared for the strict routines, grueling marches, poor food, and sleeplessness. But the harsh life offers excitement, too.

 

Compiled by Jeff Balch

Reader's Services

November, 2008