O. Henry Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 94 (2015) Winner
Dina Nayeri
ディナ・ナイェリ
Dina Nayeri
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1979 （Isfahan）
- Nationality
- Iranian, American, French
- Languages
- English, Persian
- Religion
- Christianity
- Residence History
- Isfahan, Iran → Dubai, UAE → Rome, Italy → Oklahoma, USA → New York, USA → Amsterdam, Netherlands → London, UK → Scotland, UK
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Essayist, Memoirist, Short story writer
- Active Years
- 2013-2024
- Affiliations
- McKinsey & Company, Saks Fifth Avenue
- Nominations
- Finalist, American Academy Rome Prize, Finalist, Kirkus Prize (The Ungrateful Refugee), Finalist, Los Angeles Times Book Prize (The Ungrateful Refugee), Finalist, Elle Prix des Lectrices (The Ungrateful Refugee), Finalist, National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction (Who Gets Believed)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Princeton University | — | Literature | BA | 1997-2001 | United States |
| Harvard University | Graduate School of Education | Education | MEd | — | United States |
| Harvard University | Business School | Business | MBA | — | United States |
| Iowa Writers' Workshop | — | Creative Writing | MFA | — | United States |
Princeton University
Literature
Degree:
BA
Period:
1997-2001
Year of Graduation:
2001
Country:
United States
Harvard University
Graduate School of Education
/ Education
Degree:
MEd
Year of Graduation:
2003
Country:
United States
Harvard University
Business School
/ Business
Degree:
MBA
Year of Graduation:
2003
Country:
United States
Iowa Writers' Workshop
Creative Writing
Degree:
MFA
Country:
United States
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Program | A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea | — | Barnes & Noble | winner |
| 2015 | O. Henry Prize | A Ride out of Phrao | — | — | winner |
| 2016 | National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship | — | — | National Endowment for the Arts | winner |
| 2018 | UNESCO City of Literature Paul Engle Prize | — | — | Iowa City UNESCO City of Literature | winner |
| 2020 | Geschwister Scholl-Preis | The Ungrateful Refugee | — | — | winner |
| 2020 | Clara Johnson Prize | The Ungrateful Refugee | — | — | winner |
Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Program
2013
Work:
A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea
Organization:
Barnes & Noble
Result:
winner
O. Henry Prize
2015
Work:
A Ride out of Phrao
Result:
winner
National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship
2016
Organization:
National Endowment for the Arts
Result:
winner
UNESCO City of Literature Paul Engle Prize
2018
Organization:
Iowa City UNESCO City of Literature
Result:
winner
Geschwister Scholl-Preis
2020
Work:
The Ungrateful Refugee
Result:
winner
Clara Johnson Prize
2020
Work:
The Ungrateful Refugee
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea
2013 Literary fictionA novel about a girl separated from her friend after emigrating from Iran to Oklahoma.
RefugeesFamilyIranian culture
Translations
- Translated into 14 languages
Refuge
2017 Literary fictionA semi-autobiographical novel about a father-daughter relationship and the refugee crisis, alternating perspectives between a woman in Amsterdam and her father in Iran.
Father-daughter relationshipRefugee crisisIran
The Ungrateful Refugee
2019 Creative non-fictionA memoir exploring what immigrants never tell you about their experiences.
ImmigrationRefugeesIdentity
The Waiting Place
2020 Non-fictionAn account of an Iranian refugee family's odyssey.
RefugeesFamily journey
Who Gets Believed
2023 Non-fictionExplores who gets believed when the truth isn't enough.
BeliefTruthImmigrants
Bibliography
- A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea (2013)
- Refuge (2017)
- The Ungrateful Refugee (2019)
- The Waiting Place (2020)
- Who Gets Believed (2023)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Semi-autobiographical narrativeLyrical prose
- Recurring Motifs
- Refugee experiencesFamily separationCultural identity
Legacy
Iranian-American writer renowned for her works on refugee and immigrant experiences, exploring family dynamics and displacement, with multiple awards.
Trivia
- Her brother Daniel Nayeri is also a writer.
- Mother was a doctor, father a dentist.
- Fled Iran due to mother's conversion to Christianity.
- Became US citizen at age 15.
- Former strategy consultant at McKinsey.