Episode 05: Diana Abu-Jaber
Author and professor Diana Abu-Jaber sits down with Matt Stiffler to chat about her new young adult fantasy novel, Silverworld (2020). She shares with us her trajectory as a writer who often focuses on food and identity.
About Diana Abu-Jaber:
Diana Abu-Jaber was born in Syracuse, New York to an American mother and a Jordanian father. Her family moved to Jordan a few times throughout her childhood, and elements of both her American and Jordanian experiences, as well as cross-cultural issues, especially culinary reflections, appear in her work. Diana teaches writing and literature at Portland State University and divides her time between South Florida and Portland, Oregon.
Diana has written many works of fiction and memoir. Her second novel, Crescent, won the PEN Center Award for Literary fiction and the Before Columbus Foundation American Book Award, and her novel Birds Of Paradise, won the 2012 Arab American Book Award. Her most recent work, Silverworld is her first foray into Young Adult fiction, and was published in 2020 by Crown Books for young readers.
