Hooda Shawa

Lit Lists Bushra Khalfan, Fakhri al-Barudi, Hassanine Ben Ammou, Hooda Shawa, Sonallah Ibrahim This month, we have books and events coming in September 2026, as well as one we missed from the end of August.

Hooda Shawa, trans. from the Arabic by Sawad Hussain and Nour Jaljuli, illus. by Nada Esmaeel. Yonder, $18 (176p) ISBN 978-1-63206-407-3 Shawa and Esmaeel blend mystery and romance in a moving novel about two Palestinian teens in present-day Paris. After fleeing the conflict in Syria with her parents, Farida Ma’rouf feels fortunate to work as a painter for Latin Quarter gallery owner Monsieur Joaquim Botta, urges Farida to produce works like those by Matisse.

Esther Novak, illus. by Susan Gal. Apples & Honey, $19.95 (32p) ISBN 978-1-6811-5653-8 With this bright picture book that earns its optimistic viewpoint, debut author Novak and Gal (Awe!) earnestly remind young readers that they get some say in how they meet—or “paint”—the world. Building on a tidy three-beat structure—the letdown, the reframe, the release—the creators use a redheaded child’s reactions to various kinds of weather as their model.