Audiobooks for Arab American Heritage Month

Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits evokes the grit and enduring grace that is modern Morocco.

As four Moroccans illegally cross the Strait of Gibraltar in an inflatable boat headed for Spain, author Laila Lalami asks, What has driven them to risk their lives? And will the rewards prove to be worth the danger? There's Murad, a gentle, unemployed... Read more »

Everything Comes Next

“I have never heard such a profound take on an onion. And most of Nye's poems in this collection are very much the same - finding beauty and meaning in the mundane. I found myself brought to tears on multiple occasions, from happiness and sadness both. Everything Comes Next is undeniably powerful in its simplicity and gentleness. Nye does not rage; she does not need to. She states her truth, asks her questions, and allows them to speak for themselves. Striking. Hopeful. Necessary. ”

Britt, Second Star to the Right

The Thirty Names of Night

“Since the death of his ornithologist mother in a fire five years ago, Nadir, a young, closeted trans man, has lived with and cared for his grandmother. Struggling with his mother’s death and his identity, he begins a quest to validate her sighting of a rare bird, so rare that only two others have claimed to have seen it and most ornithologists deny its existence. One of the people known to have documented the bird and allegedly painted it, is a mysterious artist who disappeared many years ago, Laila Z. In his quest to find the painting, Nadir discovers a notebook kept by Laila Z, and within that notebook, he learns secrets linking her with his family before both his grandparents and Laila Z immigrated to the United States from Syria. His quest to vindicate his mother parallels his journey to better know himself and to begin to live freely and openly. In this captivating story of three generations, told by Nadir and Laila Z, Joukhadar explores the need to know oneself, to belong, to be seen and accepted and loved. ”

Nancy, Raven Book Store

Kanzi's family has moved from Egypt to America, and on her first day in a new school, what she wants more than anything is to fit in. Maybe that's why she forgets to take the kofta sandwich her father has made for her lunch, but that backfires when Mama shows up at school with the sandwich. Mama wears a hijab and calls her daughter Habibti (dear... Read more »

"Narrators Fiona Hardingham and Steve West lend their exceptional vocal skills to this fantasy novel...Both narrators deliver commanding performances steeped in drama and suspense, drawing out every ounce of emotion and intrigue: — AudioFile Magazine, Earphones Award winner

Set in a richly detailed world inspired by ancient Arabia, Hafsah...

“Mirage is full of characters who feel like they existed long before the story began, and a rich world that is as beautiful as it is cruel. Somaiya Daud is a rare talent. A smart, romantic, exciting debut.” —Veronica Roth, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divergent and Carve the Mark

A stunning epic fantasy audiobook inspired by the...

The Map of Salt and Stars

“The two intertwining stories--one an ancient folk tale, one a story set in modern day Syria, and both featuring a young girl not yet come of age as the protagonist and hero of her own adventure--is brilliantly performed by Lara Sawalha. I was captivated from the first but both the rich stories and the gorgeous telling of them.”

Kris, Left Bank Books

This riveting memoir follows a Lebanese-Muslim-American and thirty-year US Marine veteran who suffered a six-month ordeal at the hands of a brutal regime in Yemen—and remained loyal to his country through it all.

A sensuous and richly-imagined historical novel that centers on a skilled young carpet weaver, her arranged marriage, and her quest for self-determination in 17th-century Persia.

In 17th-century Iran, a 14-year-old woman believes she will be married within the year. But when her beloved father dies, she and her mother find themselves alone and... Read more »

An Arab-American Chocolat—a sensual blend of food, love and longing. Read more »

Leap of Faith is the dramatic and inspiring story of an American woman’s remarkable journey into the heart of a man and his nation.

Born into a distinguished Arab-American family and raised amid privilege, Lisa Halaby joined the first freshman class at Princeton to accept women, graduating in 1974 with a degree in architecture and urban planning....

From Fouad Ajami, an acclaimed author and chronicler of Arab politics, comes a compelling account of how a generation of Arab intellectuals tried to introduce cultural renewals in their homelands through the forces of modernity and secularism. Ultimately, they came to face disappointment, exile, and, on occasion, death. Brilliantly weaving...

In 2013, just two years after the popular overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian military ousted the country's first democratically elected president—Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood—and subsequently led a brutal repression of the Islamist group. These bloody events echoed an older political rift in Egypt and the Middle East: the... Read more »

Winner of the Graywolf Press African Fiction Prize, a lush experimental novel about love as a weapon of empire. In the aftermath of the Arab Spring, an Egyptian American woman and a man from the village of Shobrakheit meet at a café in Cairo. He was a photographer of the revolution, but now finds himself unemployed and addicted to cocaine,... Read more »

Linda Sarsour, co-organizer of the Women’s March, shares an “unforgettable memoir” (Booklist) about how growing up Palestinian Muslim American, feminist, and empowered moved her to become a globally recognized activist on behalf of marginalized communities across the country.

On a chilly spring morning in Brooklyn, nineteen-year-old Linda Sarsour... Read more »

2020 Palestine Book Awards Winner
2021 Aspen Words Literary Prize Finalist

“Susan Abulhawa possesses the heart of a warrior; she looks into the darkest crevices of lives, conflicts, horrendous injustices, and dares to shine light that can illuminate hidden worlds for us.” —Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize–winning author

In this... Read more »

A myth-shattering view of the medieval Islamic world’s myriad scientific innovations, which preceded—and enabled—the European Renaissance

The Arabic legacy of science and philosophy has long been hidden from the West. British-Iraqi physicist Jim Al-Khalili unveils that legacy to fascinating effect by returning to its roots in the hubs of Arab...

Finalist for the National Book Award in Fiction
Finalist for the Kirkus Prize in Fiction
Winner of the Arab American Book Award in Fiction
Named a Best Book of the Year by Time, the Washington Post, BookPage, NPR, the Guardian, Variety, New York Public Library, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Dallas Morning News, and Kirkus Reviews. 

From the Pulitzer... Read more »

The award-winning stories in Dima Alzayat's collection, Alligator and Other Stories, are luminous and tender, whether dealing with a woman preforming burial rites for her brother in "Ghusl," or the great-aunt struggling to explain cultural identity to her niece in "Once We Were Syrians."

Alzayat's stories are rich and relatable, chronicling a... Read more »

A Woman Is No Man

“A Woman Is No Man gives a rare and terrifying look into the lives of three generations of Palestinian and Palestinian-American women. Readers are invited into the secret world of these women living in Palestine and then Brooklyn; we watch nervously as they try to navigate and reconcile their two worlds — the violent, patriarchal world at home and the confusing, anti-cultural world outside their front door. I cringed at the pain and cheered at the successes of the women I came to know. This beautifully written book shines a light on an important topic. It is a story that must be told and, as importantly, must be heard.”

Debra Barrett, Where the Sidewalk Ends