Nye, Naomi Shihab. (1999). Habibi. New York: Simon and Schuster. 271 pp.

Grade Range: 6-12

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Summary and Critique

Liyana Abboud, an Arab-American teenager, moves at the age of fourteen from St. Louis to Palestine with her family as she is becoming a woman during the 1970s. Liyana, her mother, and her brother have spent their entire lives in the United States, and they become immersed within the many vibrant cultures of the Middle East, particularly as they are embraced by Dr. Abbouds'relatives. What at first appears to be an ending eventually emerges into a beginning, an exploration into her heritage and family. In her father's homeland of Palestine, Liyana feels like a stranger, not fully comprehending the cultural laws or the language. However, through refugee camp children, her grandmother, and Omer (an Israeli Jew), Liyana begins to love her heritage. As she explores issues of war within Israel, Liyana discovers peace and hope despite tragedies within the diverse group of characters surrounding her.

The poignant story of Liyana and her family parallels Naomi Shihab Nye's own life and experiences as an Arab-American in the United States and Israel/Palestine to craft a compelling novel. Especially during the recent events of September 11^th and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, Habibi offers hope for peace and the opportunity to explore the often unheard story of the Arab-American experience in the United States and in Palestine. Critics praised Nye for her poetic imagery, complex characters, and insight into the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Awards

ALA Best Book for Young Adults

ALA Notable Children's Book

Jane Addams Book Award

New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age

American Bookseller"Pick of the Lists"

Judy Lopez Memorial Award for Children's Literature

Texas Institute of Letters Best Book for Young Readers

Themes/Topics

Families

Friends and Enemies

Generations

Race, Ethnicity, and Culture

Challenges and Triumphs

War and Peace

The Individual vs. Society

Love, Sex, and Romance

Author/Illustrator/Editor Information:

Naomi Shihab Nye was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Much like Liyana in Habibi, her mother is an American and her father is a Palestinian. When she was 14, her family moved to Jerusalem and she attended one year of high school, after which her family moved to San Antonio, TX. She still lives in San Antonio, where she utilizes the voices of Mexican-Americans and Arab-Americans in her poetry and novels. Nye is well-known for her poetry, children's picture books, short stories, music, and poetry anthologies, having earned numerous awards. In her works, she focuses upon similarities and differences between cultures and generations of families, drawing from her own multicultural adolescent experiences.

For more information on Naomi Shihab Nye:

http://www.harperchildrens.com/authorintro/index.asp?authorid=15255 This website includes biographical information, several excerpts from her books, author's notes and interviews, and current book tour information.

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/174 Website offering biographical information and five diverse poems written by Nye.

Media Connections

Movies

Bend It Like Beckham (2002) A young Indian woman living in England discovers her joy for soccer as she negotiates her Indian heritage, the expectations of her parents, and her own dreams and hopes. The movie deals with multicultural issues, familial obligations, coming of age, love, and friendship.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002) A Greek-American woman struggles with discovering herself and planning for a wedding that brings two diverse cultures and classes together.

Avalon (1990) The story of immigrant families coming to America, with the second generation losing their cultural traditions.

Frontline: Muslims (2002) A documentary on the tenets of Islam and how

Muslims around the world follow and interpret their faith.

50 Years War- Israel and the Arabs (2000) A PBS documentary on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Major players are interviewed and features throughout the (such as Netanyahu, Arafat, US Presidents, etc.).

The Last Samurai (2003) In a drama set in 19^th Century Japan, a man hired to destroy the Samurai way of life is captured and taught their history and culture.

Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) An American woman begins a new life in a foreign country, Italy, encountering language and cultural barriers.

Television

Road Rules 10: The Quest Episodes 1 & 2. This particular Road Rules season is set in the Sahara Desert. In these episodes, Road Ruler Ellen becomes upset when locals throw rocks at her. The cast members have a discussion over her attire and its inappropriateness. They felt that in order to be respectful of the culture, they should adjust their actions and clothing. This event parallels Liyana's frustration over not being able to take her shorts with her to Palestine. Ellen responds to the incident in a journal entry on the MTV website, Entry #6, http://www.mtv.com/onair/roadrules/season10/ellen_diary/entry_6.jhtml

7^th Heaven. Episode"Suspicion" from Season #6. In this episode,

Ruthie protects her Muslim friend Yasmine from racist bullies who are persecuting Yasmine based upon her ethnicity and religious beliefs. The WB website also includes a website link for further resources in response to 9/11 and combating discrimination. See Online Resources section.

Music

"Looking Through Your Eyes." Sung by LeAnn Rimes. The Best of LeAnn Rimes. Warner, 2004. Addresses issues of love and glimpsing life and ourselves from another person's perspective

Online Resources

http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20040324wednesday.html "Counterterrorism 101: Evaluating Israeli Strategies to Combat Terrorism" An extensive lesson plan on war and responses to terrorism in Israel from the perspectives of both Jewish and Palestinian people.

http://turnerlearning.com/thewb/7thheaven/suspicion/stopping.html To go along with the aforementioned episode of 7^th Heaven, this Web site provides an opportunity to request a tape of the episode, historical context, statistics, steps towards ending prejudice, September 11^th information, educator's and parents'guides to the episode, focus questions, hate in the media, understanding Islam, and more!

http://www.arches.uga.edu/~godlas/shihabnye.html "Letter from Naomi Shihab Nye, Arab-American Poet: To Any Would-Be Terrorists." An amazing letter written by Nye in response to the September 11^th events, to the hatred felt by the terrorists, and to people discriminating Arab-Americans.

http://www.pbs.org/now/classroom/poet.html A fantastic website including lesson plans for Nye's poetry, excerpts, an interview with Nye and Bill Moyers, starter activities, and resources.

http://www.mavinmag.com/ The online home of the MAVIN Foundation, an organization dealing with and celebrating multiracial issues, such as being a biracial child. It includes a magazine, resource book and center, and links to articles addressing multiracial issues. The founder Matt Kelley has received numerous national awards.

http://www.adl.org/prejudice/default.asp "Close the Book on Hate" This site includes 101 ways to combat prejudice and hate in homes, schools, work, religious communities, and neighborhoods. A great resource, there is also an extensive reading list for all ages and of all genres provided by Barnes and Noble that accentuate diversity and tolerance.

Related Texts

Ashabranner, Brent. (1991). An Ancient Heritage: The Arab-American Minority. New York: Harper Collins Publishers. In this nonfiction work, the cultural values, traditions, and contributions to the United States by Arab-Americans are revealed through interviews, photographs, and stories. Of particular interest to connections with Habibi are the issues of the Arab-Israeli conflict, stereotypes, the repression of women, and growing up.

Cisneros, Sandra. (1991). The House on Mango Street. New York: Vintage Contemporaries. 128pp. The story of a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago as told through a series of vignettes. Many of the vignettes can be used as parallels or contrasts to sections of Habibi. For instance,"My Name" (Cisneros) could be used with"Welcome" (Nye). (Also see the Teaching Ideas section for connections)

Mazer, Anne (Ed). (1993). America Street: A Multicultural Anthology of Stories. New York: Persea Books. 152pp. A short story anthology dealing with the diverse (and yet comparable) multiethnic experiences of immigrants and second/third-generation teenagers. Authors such as Soto, Cormier, Namioka contributed.


Loughery, John (Ed). (1994). Into the Widening World: International Coming of Age Stories. New York: Persea Books. 268pp. Twenty-six short stories written by award winning authors from diverse cultures (such as Munro, Marquez, Mishima, Gordimer, etc). Students will discover the similarities and differences experienced by all young adults.

Nye, Naomi Shihab (Ed). (1998). The Space Between Our Footsteps: Poems and Paintings from the Middle East. New York: Simon and Schuster Children's. 144pp. A young adult poetry anthology with artwork from the Middle East. Topics include stereotypes, war, love, childhood, and family.

Peck, Richard. (2002). A Year Down Yonder. New York: Puffin. 144pp. During the Depression, 15 year old Mary Alice goes to live with her authoritative and yet marvelous Grandma Dowdel. As Mary Alice comes of age and deals with the typical teenage problems, her grandmother teaches her life lessons in an unconventional way. A comparison with Liyana's Sitti and student's grandmothers would be excellent in terms of generational issues.

Rochman, Hazel and Darlene MacCampbell (Eds). (1998). Leaving Home: Stories. Minneapolis: Sagebrush Education Resources. 240pp. An anthology of short stories with an emphasis on the physical and emotional journeys/moves we take in life from well-known authors such as Morrison, Wynne-Jones, and Norah Fox Mazer.

Yolen, Jane. (2004). Devil's Arithmetic. New York: Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. 170pp. A young American girl is resentful of her Jewish heritage until she travels back in time to a concentration camp. In dealing with the Holocaust, students can better understand the depths of the Arab-Israeli conflict and why each feels a claim to a homeland.

Teaching Ideas

(1) "Vignettes About Our Own Lives" In conjunction with The House on Mango Street, have students create a project with 15 vignettes of their own with titles. Ideas include displaying the vignettes creatively, and focusing upon struggles, victories, family, friends, school, etc. As Habibi is written in an almost vignette-type format, students could utilize both as examples for their own writing and for springboards.

[Adapted from "Writing Our Own Vignettes" by Jolene Gensheimer in Ideas Plus Book 18. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, pp. 36-37.]

(2) "Symbols" In a powerful move to demonstrate the positives that come from acts of terrorism and hate, have students deal with tragedies through compelling symbols. Davis'classroom dealt with September 11, 2001 by brainstorming symbols of hope, such as flowers and a tree in bud. After reading the poem"The Heart of a Tree" by Henry Cuyler Bunner, the students planted a tree in front of their school. Students could then respond to the symbolic planting of the tree through journal entries, poems, or essays.

[Summarized from "The Symbolism of Hope" by Barbara Davis in Classroom Notes Plus. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English. August 2002, p. 4.]

(3) "The Media's Influence" Mass media is a pervasive force in the world around us. By encouraging students to realize the influence various forms of media can have on our thoughts and beliefs, have them first brainstorm the types of media they would turn to in a major event/crisis. Then, have students explore the concept that the media (such as the television, radio, newspapers, etc.) bring the world into our homes in positive and negative ways. Students could write or discuss in small groups the major events, controversies, and places they have experienced through the media and how it impacted their own lives. In reference to Habibi, a teacher could emphasize the amount of information presented on the Israeli cause as opposed to the Palestinian cause. How does this effect our perceptions of the conflict? Do they receive equal time or are the stories slanted towards a particular side?

[Adapted from "The Influence of Media" by Patricia A. Slagle in Ideas Plus Book 3. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, pp. 20-21.]

(Review written by Kiersten Ferguson and edited by Jennifer E. Moore)