Susan muaddi darraj biography of william
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Civil Discourse Series Hosts Palestinian American Novelist
What’s it like growing up as a Palestinian American?
For Susan Muaddi Darraj, a Palestinian-American author of books for adults and children, including the Farah Rocks series, the answer is in a word: complicated.
Muaddi Darraj will discuss her upbringing in the latest in Hunter’s Promoting Civil Discourse & Intellectual Dialogue series: “The Intersection of Identity: Growing Up Palestinian-American,” on February 13. The discussion will take place from 3 pm to 4:30 pm at Hunter’s Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute, 47-49 E. 65th St.
Muaddi Darraj explores the tensions of growing up Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, and American in her novels, including the well-received Behind You Is the Sea, which follows characters from an immigrant family in Maryland as they confront a diverse country with different mores and values.
“Our identity is central to our sense of self and influences all our decisions in life,” said H
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The Perspective of a Published Author: An Interview with Professor Susan Muaddi Darraj
Article by Luke Teigue & Photography by Stephen McFillin | Owl Staff
Professor Susan Muaddi Darraj stands next to a flyer advertising her newest novel, “Behind You is The Sea.”
Personal experiences and real-world events can often inspire authors to create a story that deeply resonates with readers. With a background in writing and literature reaching back as far as the fourth grade, Professor Susan Muaddi Darraj has crafted a complex and touching new novel.
Since 2004, Darraj has worked full time at Harford Community College teaching both literature and creative writing. She is now a published author, USA Artists Ford Fellow, winner of an American Book Award, two Arab American Book Awards, and a Maryland State Arts Council Independent Artists Award.
Her most recent novel, titled “Behind You Is the Sea,” tells the story of a Palestinian-American immigrant
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BALTIMORE — Thousands of English teachers and reading specialists took over the Baltimore Convention Center recently for the annual conference of the National Council of Teachers of English and its affiliated Assembly on Literature for Adolescents kurs. There inom heard the same startling statistics over and over. Sadly, it wasn’t the first time the numbers had been brought up at a meeting of book lovers. I had been hearing the same statistic for almost a year at conferences all over the country, including the National Women’s Studies Association, the Kweli literary conference, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and Baltimore’s CityLit Festival.
Panelists, keynote speakers and attendees all referred to — and some handed out copies of — a graphic released bygd the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, which annually compiles and analyzes the number of books featuring children of color. It was not hard to see why every