''Habibi'' is a 1997

young adult novel Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is primarily targeted at adolescents, approximately half of YA readers are adults. The subject matter and genres of YA correlate ...

Naomi Shihab Nye Naomi Shihab Nye ( ar, نعومي شهاب ناي; born March 12, 1952) is an American poet, editor, songwriter, and novelist. Born to a Palestinian father and an American mother, she began composing her first poetry at the age of six. In total ...

. It tells the story of 14-year-old Liyana Abboud and her family, her

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

father,

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

mother, and brother Rafik, who move from their home in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

to Mr. Abboud's native home of

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

in the 1970s. It is

semi-autobiographical An autobiographical novel is a form of novel using autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fictive elements. The literary technique is distinguished from an autobiography or memoir by the stipulation of being fiction. Bec ...

. Nye's debut novel was named an

ALA Ala, ALA, Alaa or Alae may refer to: Places * Ala, Hiiu County, Estonia, a village * Ala, Valga County, Estonia, a village * Ala, Alappuzha, Kerala, India, a village * Ala, Iran, a village in Semnan Province * Ala, Gotland, Sweden * Alad, S ...

Best Book for Young Adults, an ALA Notable Book, a

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...

Book for the Teen Age, and a

Texas Institute of Letters The Texas Institute of Letters is a non-profit Honor Society founded by William Harvey Vann in 1936 to celebrate Texas literature and to recognize distinctive literary achievement. The TIL’s elected membership consists of the state’s most respe ...

Best Book for Young Readers. It received the

Jane Addams Children's Book Award The Jane Addams Children's Book Award is given annually to a children's book published the preceding year that advances the causes of peace and social equality. The awards have been presented annually since 1953. They were previously given joint ...

, given annually to a children's book that advances the causes of peace and social equality. In 2000, it also received the Middle East Book Award for Youth Literature.

Reception

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' noted how the book was capable of showing the best and worst of

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

through "short-story-like chapters and poetic language." Although they also praised the book's description of the

Israeli–Palestinian conflict The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is one of the world's most enduring conflicts, beginning in the mid-20th century. Various attempts have been made to resolve the conflict as part of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, alongside other ef ...

and the region's history, they commented how "the human story ..fall away from the plot." ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' review praised Nye's mix of acceptance and persecution, and said the "climactic ending will leave readers pondering ..why Arabs, Jews, Greeks and Armenians can no longer live in harmony".

References

Reviews

Where Rage Lives
New York Times
Habibi
Publishers Weekly 1997 American novels American young adult novels Novels set in St. Louis Novels set in the Israeli Military Governorate Novels set in the 1970s Books by Naomi Shihab Nye 1997 children's books 1997 debut novels Children's books set in the 1970s Children's books set in Missouri Children's books set in Israel {{1990s-ya-novel-stub