Homeland: My Father Dreams of Palestine

(Hardback)

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Description

A father and his daughters may not be able to return home . . . but they can celebrate stories of their homeland! As bedtime approaches, three young girls eagerly await the return of their father who tells them stories of a faraway homeland-Palestine. Through their father's memories, the Old City of Jerusalem comes to life: the sounds of street vendors beating rhythms with brass coffee cups, the smell of argileh drifting through windows, and the sight of doves flapping their wings toward home. These daughters of the diaspora feel love for a place they have never been, a place they cannot go. But, as their father's story comes to an end, they know that through his memories they will always return. A Palestinian family celebrates the stories of their homeland in this moving autobiographical picture book debut by Hannah Moushabeck. With heartfelt illustrations by Reem Madooh, this story is a love letter to home, to family, and to the persisting hope of people, which transcends borders.

Reviews

"... [A] stirring tale with details that evoke the senses. A beautiful tale of family, love for a lost homeland, and remembrance." -- Kirkus Reviews

Author Bio

Hannah Moushabeck is a second-generation Palestinian American author, editor, and marketer who was raised in a family of booksellers and publishers in Western Massachusetts and England. Born into Interlink Publishing, a family-run independent publishing company, she learned the power of literature at a young age. Homeland: My Father Dreams of Palestine is her first picture book. She lives in Western Massachusetts, near her family. Reem Madooh is an illustrator from Kuwait with an MA in Children's Book Illustration. She is an avid picture book collector and loves narrative storytelling and incorporating a dreamlike atmosphere into her art. As a child, she enjoyed listening to stories of the old days from her parents and grandparents. She also loves za'atar and makes sure to have some every day. Homeland: My Father Dreams of Palestine is her first picture book. She lives in Kuwait.