Brainstorm 178: International Reads Pt 7: the Middle East

There’s only a few more regions left in our International Reads series. This week we have some Middle Eastern books. There are several countries in this region I just couldn’t find a book for. Authors, we could use some books set in Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, and Yemen it seems. I found several short stories from real people in Syria and Yemen combined in with other refugee/displaced people stories (I recommend checking out We Are Displaced or The Displaced if you’re interested in some of those but I’m not including them here since they’re both combos of stories from many countries). For the full parameters I’ve set for books included in this series please refer to the first post in the series (it will explain why there’s no Arabian Nights-ish stuff here). And in the interest of space, I’m not including summaries or reviews here. Please click on the book’s title to see my review, or if I haven’t read the book yet, others’ reviews.

Looking for other International reads? Here's the rest of this blog series so far:

International Reads Pt 1: Africa

International Reads Pt 2: Asia

International Reads Pt 3: Australia, New Zealand, & Oceania

International Reads Pt 4: Central America & the Caribbean

International Reads Pt 5: Europe & Eurasia 1/2 

International Reads Pt 6: Europe & Eurasia 2/2

IRAN

Saffron Ice Cream by Rashin Kheiriyeh
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Picture Book, Lower Grade Fiction
*Note: Some parts in the USA

IRAQ

Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization by Paul Kriwaczek
Genre: History, Adult Nonfiction

Babylon’s Ark: the Incredible Wartime Rescue of the Babylon Zoo by Lawrence Anthony, with Graham Spence
Genre: Animal Stories, War Stories, Memoir, Adult Nonfiction

The Librarian of Basra: a True Story from Iraq by Jeanette Winter
Genre: Picture Book Biography, Lower Grade Nonfiction

Poppies of Iraq by Brigitte Findakly, ill. by Lewis Trondheim
Genre: Memoir, Graphic Novel, Adult Nonfiction
*Note: Some parts in France

The World Is Not a Rectangle: a Portrait of Architect Zaha Hadid by Jeanette Winter
Genre: Picture Book Biography, Lower Grade Nonfiction

ISRAEL/PALESTINE 

A.D. 33 (A.D., #2) by Ted Dekker
Genre: Historical Fiction, Religious Fiction, Adult Fiction

Dawn (Night Trilogy, #2) by Elie Wiesel, translated by Frances Frenaye
Genre: Historical Fiction, Suspense Fiction, Adult Fiction

The Language of Angels: the Reinvention of Hebrew by Richard Michelson, ill. by Karla Gudeon
Genre: Picture Book Biography, Lower Grade Nonfiction

Son of Hamas by Mosab Hassan Yousef with Ron Brackin
Genre: Autobiography, Religious Nonfiction, Thriller, Adult Nonfiction

JORDAN

Queen Rania of Jordan (Snap Books: Queens and Princesses) by Mary Englar
Genre: Biography, Middle Grade Nonfiction

SYRIA

Escape from Aleppo by N.H. Senzai
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Thriller, Middle Grade Fiction
*Note: Some parts in Europe

The Morning They Came for Us: Dispatches from Syria by Janine Di Giovanni
Genre: Current Events, Memoir, War Stories, Adult Nonfiction

TURKEY

1453: the Holy War for Constantinople and the Clash of Islam and the West by Roger Crowley
Genre: History, Adult Nonfiction

The Emperor’s Winding Sheet by Jill Patton Walsh
Genre: Historical Fiction, Young Adult Fiction

Mosque by David Macaulay
Genre: Architecture, History, Religion, Middle Grade Nonfiction

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Mimi’s Hair (Mimi) by Fatima Sharafeddine, ill. by Rasha Mounib al Hakim
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Picture Book, Lower Grade Fiction