Illustrator of
Dear Muslim Child (Balzer + Bray / HarperCollins Publishers, 2024)
Author/Illustrator of
These Olive Trees (Viking Books / Penguin Random House, 2023)
Aya Ghanameh is a Palestinian illustrator, writer, and designer from Amman, Jordan currently based in New York City. Her work moves away from state-centric ways of thinking to center the voices of ordinary people in historical and political narratives. Her debut children’s picture book, These Olive Trees (Viking Books, 2023), is inspired by the experiences of her family who cultivated her love of the earth throughout her upbringing in exile.
Aya graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in Illustration and minor in Literary Arts and Studies. Previously a Children’s Books & Gifts Design Fellow at Chronicle Books, she is now a Designer with Penguin Workshop at Penguin Random House.
Aya Ghanameh
Books by Aya Ghanameh
Dear Muslim Child (Balzer + Bray / HarperCollins Publishers, 2024)
This inspirational picture book from the author of Dear Black Child encourages Muslim children to take joy and pride in their Islamic faith. Perfect for fans of In My Mosque and The Proudest Blue. Dear Muslim Child, your story matters.
In this lyrical ode to Islam, Muslim children all over the world are encouraged to celebrate their faith and traditions.
These Olive Trees (Viking Books / Penguin Random House, 2023)
New York Public Library Best Books of 2023
The story of a Palestinian family’s ties to the land, and how one young girl finds a way to care for her home, even as she says goodbye.
It’s 1967 in Nablus, Palestine.
Oraib loves the olive trees that grow outside the refugee camp where she lives. Each harvest, she and her mama pick the small fruits and she eagerly stomp stomp stomps on them to release their golden oil. Olives have always tied her family to the land, as Oraib learns from the stories Mama tells of a home before war.
But war has come to their door once more, forcing them to flee. Even as her family is uprooted, Oraib makes a solemn promise to her beloved olive trees. She will see to it that their legacy lives on for generations to come.
Debut author-illustrator Aya Ghanameh boldly paints a tale of bitterness, hope, and the power of believing in a free and thriving future.