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Ibtisam Barakat

イブティサム・バラカト

Ibtisam Barakat

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1963-10-02 （Beit Hanina, East Jerusalem）
Nationality
Palestinian American
Languages
Arabic, English
Residence History
Beit Hanina, East Jerusalem → New York City, United States (moved 1986)

Career

Occupations
Author, Poet, Artist, Translator, Educator
Active Years
1986-
Influenced By
Mahmoud Darwish

Education

Birzeit University
Degree: 学士
Country: Palestine
Earned a bachelor's degree at a university near Ramallah
University of Missouri
Degree: 修士（ジャーナリズム／人間発達・家族学）
Country: United States
Earned a master's degree in journalism and another in human development and family studies

Awards

Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award
2009
Work: Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood
Result: ノミネート
International Reading Association Best Nonfiction for Young Adults
2008
Work: Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood
Organization: International Reading Association
Result: 受賞
Arab American Book Award (Children/Young Adult)
2008
Work: Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood
Category: Children/Young Adult
Organization: Arab American Museum
Result: 受賞
Middle East Council Best Literature Book Award
2007
Work: Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood
Organization: Middle East Council
Result: 受賞
Anna Lindh Foundation Award for Best Literature for Arabic Children
2011
Work: Al Ta' Al Marbouta Tateer (The Letter Ta Escapes)
Organization: Anna Lindh Foundation
Result: 受賞
Sheikh Zayed Book Award
2020
Work: The Lilac Girl
Organization: Sheikh Zayed Book Award
Result: 受賞
Arab American Book Award (Children/Young Adult) - ノミネート
2017
Work: Balcony on the Moon: Coming of Age in Palestine
Category: Children/Young Adult
Organization: Arab American Museum
Result: ノミネート
Junior Library Guild Selection
2016
Work: Balcony on the Moon: Coming of Age in Palestine
Organization: Junior Library Guild
Result: 選出
News & Observer Wilde Best Book Award
2016
Work: Balcony on the Moon: Coming of Age in Palestine
Organization: News & Observer
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood

2007 Memoir (Young Adult / Nonfiction)

A memoir about growing up under Israeli occupation after the 1967 Six-Day War, recounting the persistence and resistance of Palestinian life and family memories.

OccupationFamilyComing of ageMemory

Balcony on the Moon: Coming of Age in Palestine

2016 Memoir / Young Adult Nonfiction

A coming-of-age memoir that intertwines personal growth with the social and political realities of Palestine, written in an accessible voice for young readers.

Self-discoveryIdentityOccupation

Al Ta' Al Marbouta Tateer (The Letter Ta Escapes)

2011 Children's literature / Picture book

A children's picture book about a letter in the Arabic alphabet that refuses to behave as it should in a word; an allegory celebrating language and letters.

LanguageLettersCreativity

Hadeyyah Lel-Hamzah (A Present for the Letter Hamzah)

2014 Children's literature / Picture book

An Arabic children's picture book written and illustrated by the author that addresses letters, expression, and imagination.

Language educationImaginationChildren's literature

The Jar that Became a Galaxy

2019 Children's literature / Picture book

A children's book published by the Tamer Institute in Ramallah, Palestine; the title inspired a national reading campaign in Palestine.

ImaginationLocal culture

The Lilac Girl

Children's / Young Adult literature

A work published by the Tamer Institute that reportedly won the Sheikh Zayed Book Award; a children's literature title.

Children's literatureCulture

Bibliography

  • Tasting the Sky (2007)
  • What a Song Can Do: 12 Riffs on the Power of Music (contributor, 2004)
  • Al Ta' Al Marbouta Tateer (2011)
  • Hadeyyah Lel-Hamzah (2014)
  • Balcony on the Moon (2016)
  • The Jar that Became a Galaxy (2019)
  • The Lilac Girl

Translations by Author

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Bilingual writing (Arabic and English)Lyrical, memoir-style narrationAccessible style for children and young adults
Recurring Motifs
Love of language and lettersFamily and memoryLife and resistance under occupation

Legacy

Recognized as a Palestinian-American voice in children's and young adult literature. Through memoirs and children's books she has introduced themes of language, identity, and life under occupation to broad audiences.

Trivia

  • Moved to New York City in 1986 and interned at The Nation magazine.
  • Bilingual author in Arabic and English.
  • Known for memoirs and children's books such as Balcony on the Moon and Tasting the Sky.