Arab American Book Award
Encyclopedia
The Arab American Book Award was established in 2006 to celebrate and support the research of, and the written work of, Arab American
s and their culture. The Arab American Book Award encourages the publication and excellence of books that preserve and advance the understanding, knowledge, and resources of the Arab American community by celebrating the thoughts and lives of Arab Americans. The purpose of the Award is to inspire authors, educate readers and foster a respect and understanding of the Arab American culture.
The Arab American Book Award was brought about by the Arab American National Museum
and faculty members of the nearby University of Toledo
. The winning titles are chosen by groups of selected readers including respected authors, university professors, artists and AANM staff. The Awards are given during an invitation only event in the Fall of the award year. The AANM first gave these awards in 2007 for books published in 2006; for 2007, the number of submissions more than doubled from the inaugural year.
To help ensure the continuity of the Arab American Book Award a special endowment fund has been launched with a $10,000 gift from Drs. A. Adnan and Barbara C. Aswad. Dr. Barbara C. Aswad is Professor Emerita of Anthropology at Wayne State University
in Detroit, Michigan and a past president of the Middle Eastern Studies Association and a Board Member Emerita for the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services
(ACCESS), parent organization of the Arab American National Museum. Dr. A. Adnan Aswad is Professor Emeritus of Engineering at the University of Michigan–Dearborn. The Aswads, now based in Los Angeles, were inspired to make the gift after the inaugural Book Award ceremony in Fall 2007.
In 2011, the Non-Fiction award was changed to the "Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award" to honor the legacy and contributions to Arab American scholarship of Evelyn Shakir, who died of breast cancer in 2010. In addition to winning the Arab American Book Award for Fiction in 2008, Professor Shakir extensively researched the history of Arab women and wrote the groundbreaking work "Bint Arab: Arab and Arab American Women in the United States" in 1997. Evelyn's longtime partner, poet George Ellenbogen, established the award in collaboration with the Arab American National Museum
1. The book must be written, edited or illustrated by an Arab American, or address the Arab American experience. See below for a list of the 22 Arab countries.
2. The book must be an original work and published in English between January 1 and December 31 of the last full calendar year. The Award is given the year after the eligible books are published.
3. The portrayal or representation of Arab Americans should be accurate and engaging; avoid stereotypes, and reflect rich characterization.
4. Submissions must be postmarked by noted deadline. (2012 Submission Deadline: February 1, 2012)
The submission form for the Arab American Book Award can be found here: http://www.arabamericanmuseum.org/umages/AABookAwardSubmissionForm.pdf.
Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award* (Formally Adult Non-Fiction, est 2011)
Children's/ Young Adult
Poetry (New in 2009)
Arab American
An Arab American is a United States citizen or resident of Arab ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage or identity, who identifies themselves as Arab. Arab Americans trace ancestry to any of the various waves of immigrants of the countries comprising the Arab World...
s and their culture. The Arab American Book Award encourages the publication and excellence of books that preserve and advance the understanding, knowledge, and resources of the Arab American community by celebrating the thoughts and lives of Arab Americans. The purpose of the Award is to inspire authors, educate readers and foster a respect and understanding of the Arab American culture.
The Arab American Book Award was brought about by the Arab American National Museum
Arab American National Museum
The Arab American National Museum , which opened in 2005, is the first museum in the world devoted to Arab American history and culture. Located in Dearborn, Michigan, the Museum seeks to dispel misconceptions about Arab Americans and other minorities....
and faculty members of the nearby University of Toledo
University of Toledo
The University of Toledo is a public university in Toledo, Ohio, United States. The Carnegie Foundation classified the university as "Doctoral/Research Extensive."-National recognition:...
. The winning titles are chosen by groups of selected readers including respected authors, university professors, artists and AANM staff. The Awards are given during an invitation only event in the Fall of the award year. The AANM first gave these awards in 2007 for books published in 2006; for 2007, the number of submissions more than doubled from the inaugural year.
To help ensure the continuity of the Arab American Book Award a special endowment fund has been launched with a $10,000 gift from Drs. A. Adnan and Barbara C. Aswad. Dr. Barbara C. Aswad is Professor Emerita of Anthropology at Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
in Detroit, Michigan and a past president of the Middle Eastern Studies Association and a Board Member Emerita for the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services
Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services
The Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services is a human services organization committed to the development of the Arab American community in all aspects of economic and cultural life. ACCESS helps low-income families, as well as newly arrived immigrants adapt to life in the United...
(ACCESS), parent organization of the Arab American National Museum. Dr. A. Adnan Aswad is Professor Emeritus of Engineering at the University of Michigan–Dearborn. The Aswads, now based in Los Angeles, were inspired to make the gift after the inaugural Book Award ceremony in Fall 2007.
In 2011, the Non-Fiction award was changed to the "Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award" to honor the legacy and contributions to Arab American scholarship of Evelyn Shakir, who died of breast cancer in 2010. In addition to winning the Arab American Book Award for Fiction in 2008, Professor Shakir extensively researched the history of Arab women and wrote the groundbreaking work "Bint Arab: Arab and Arab American Women in the United States" in 1997. Evelyn's longtime partner, poet George Ellenbogen, established the award in collaboration with the Arab American National Museum
2009 Name change for the Arab American Book Award
In 2009, The Arab American Book Award Committee changed the name of the '2008 Arab American Book Award' to the '2009 Arab American Book Award' in order to reflect the true award date instead of the publication date of the winning books. All dates in the previous Award years were also changed retroactively. While the date within the Award name has changed, the rules regarding the publication dates for eligible submissions have not.Submission Guidelines for the Arab American Book Award
As of 2009, the eligibility criteria for the Arab American Book Award are as follows:1. The book must be written, edited or illustrated by an Arab American, or address the Arab American experience. See below for a list of the 22 Arab countries.
2. The book must be an original work and published in English between January 1 and December 31 of the last full calendar year. The Award is given the year after the eligible books are published.
3. The portrayal or representation of Arab Americans should be accurate and engaging; avoid stereotypes, and reflect rich characterization.
4. Submissions must be postmarked by noted deadline. (2012 Submission Deadline: February 1, 2012)
The submission form for the Arab American Book Award can be found here: http://www.arabamericanmuseum.org/umages/AABookAwardSubmissionForm.pdf.
Past Winners of the Arab American Book Award
Adult Fiction| Year | Winner | Honorable mentions |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Loom: a Novel by Thérèse Soukar Chehade | |
| 2010 | Master of the Eclipse: And Other Stories by Etel Adnan Etel Adnan Etel Adnan is a Lebanese-American poet, essayist, and visual artist.In 2003 MELUS, the journal of the Society for the Study of the Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States, called Adnan "arguably the most celebrated and accomplished Arab American author writing today."She has said, "As for any... |
|
| 2009 | A Map of Home: A Novel by Randa Jarrar Randa Jarrar Randa Jarrar is an American novelist, short story writer, and translator.-Life:She grew up in Kuwait and Egypt, and moved to New York at the age of 13. She attended Sarah Lawrence College, and studied creative writing, then went on to receive a MA in Middle Eastern Studies from UT Austin and a MFA... |
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| 2008 | Remember Me to Lebanon by Evelyn Shakir | Origin by Diana Abu-Jaber Diana Abu-Jaber Diana Abu-Jaber is Jordanian American author and a professor at Portland State University. She was born in Syracuse, New York. Her father was Jordanian and her mother was American, descended from Irish and German roots. At the age of seven she moved with her family for two years to Jordan... |
| 2007 | In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar Hisham Matar Hisham Matar is a Libyan author. His debut novel In the Country of Men was shortlisted for the 2006 Man Booker Prize. Matar’s essays have appeared in the Asharq Alawsat, The Independent, The Guardian, The Times and The New York Times. His second novel, Anatomy of a Disappearance, was published on... |
|
Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award* (Formally Adult Non-Fiction, est 2011)
| Year | Winner | Honorable mentions |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Arab Americans in Toledo: Cultural Assimilation and Community Involvement edited by Samir Abu-Absi | Barefoot in Baghdad by Manal M. Omar |
| 2010 | Angeleno Days: An Arab American Writer on Family, Place, and Politics. by Gregory Orfalea | Homeland Insecurity: The Arab American and Muslim American Experience After 9/11. by Louise Cainkar A Country Called Amreeka: Arab Roots, American Stories. by Alia Malek |
| 2009 | How Does It Feel to Be a Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America by Moustafa Bayoumi Moustafa Bayoumi Moustafa Bayoumi is an award-winning writer, and associate professor of English at Brooklyn College, City University of New York. Born in Zürich, Switzerland, and raised in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, he currently lives in Brooklyn.... |
The Encyclopedia of Arab American Artists by Fayeq Oweis Palestine Inside Out: An Everyday Occupation by Saree Makdisi Saree Makdisi Saree Makdisi is an American literary critic of Palestinian and Lebanese descent, specializing in eighteenth and nineteenth century British literature. He also writes on contemporary Arab politics and culture. Makdisi currently holds the title of Professor of English and Comparative Literature at... |
| 2008 | Another Arabesque by John Tofik Karam | Kisses from a Distance by Raff Ellis Annals of the Caliphs’ Kitchens by Nawal Nasrallah |
| 2007 | The Iron Cage by Rashid Khalidi Rashid Khalidi Rashid Ismail Khalidi , born 1948, a Palestinian-American historian of the Middle East, is the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University, and director of the Middle East Institute of Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs.-Family, education and... |
The Arab Americans by Randa Kayyali “Evil” Arabs in American Popular Film by Tim Jon Semmerling |
Children's/ Young Adult
| Year | Winner | Honorable mentions |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Saving Sky by Diane Stanley Diane Stanley Diane Stanley is an American children's author and illustrator.Stanley was born in Abilene, Texas on December 27, 1943. She earned her bachelor's degree from Trinity University and her M. A. in medical illustration from Johns Hopkins University College of Medicine. She has worked as a medical... |
Time to Pray by Maha Addasi, illustrated by Ned Gannon |
| 2010 | No Winner for 2010 | |
| 2009 | Honeybee: Poems & Short Prose by Naomi Shihab Nye Naomi Shihab Nye Naomi Shihab Nye is a poet, songwriter, and novelist. She was born to a Palestinian father and American mother. Although she regards herself as a "wandering poet", she refers to San Antonio as her home.-Career:... |
|
| 2008 | Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood by Ibtisam Barakat Ibtisam Barakat Ibtisam Barakat is a Palestinian-American writer, poet, and educator. She was born in Beit Hanina, near Jerusalem.Barakat received her Bachelor's degree from Bir Zeit University, near Ramallah in the West Bank. In 1986, she moved to New York City, where she interned with The Nation magazine... |
|
| 2007 | One Green Apple by Eve Bunting Eve Bunting Anne Evelyn Bunting , better known as Eve Bunting, is an Irish author who has written more than 250 books. Her work covers a broad array of subjects and includes fiction and non-fiction books. Her novels are primarily aimed at children and young adults, but her works also include picture books... and Ted Lewin Ted lewin Ted Lewin is an author/illustrator of children's books. Lewin and his wife Betsy Reilly drew on their travels to exotic places such as the Amazon River, Botswana, Egypt, Lapland, the Sahara Desert, and India when collaborating on their many books... , illustrator |
|
Poetry (New in 2009)
| Year | Winner | Honorable mentions |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Tocqueville by Khaled Mattawa Khaled Mattawa Khaled Mattawa is a Libyan poet, and a renowned Arab-American writer, he is also a leading literary translator, focusing on translating Arabic poetry into English... |
This Is a Nice Neighborhood by Farid Matuk |
| 2010 | Diary of a Wave Outside the Sea. by Dunya Mikhail Dunya Mikhail Dunya Mikhail is an ethnic Chaldean United States-based poet who was born in Iraq. Mikhail worked as Literary Editor for The Baghdad Observer. Facing increasing threats and harassment from the Iraqi authorities for her writings, she fled Iraq in the late 1990s and studied Near Eastern Studies at... |
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| 2009 | breaking poems by Suheir Hammad Suheir Hammad Suheir Hammad is a Palestinian-American poet, author and political activist. She was born in Amman, Jordan. Her parents were Palestinian refugees who immigrated along with their daughter to Brooklyn, New York City when she was five years old... |
External links
- Arab American Book Award, Official Site
- Arab American National Museum Website
- http://www.accesscommunity.org/site/PageServerACCESS (Arab Community Center for Economic and Social ServicesArab Community Center for Economic and Social ServicesThe Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services is a human services organization committed to the development of the Arab American community in all aspects of economic and cultural life. ACCESS helps low-income families, as well as newly arrived immigrants adapt to life in the United...
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