Hannah Lillith Assadi Explained

Hannah Lillith Assadi
Education:Columbia University (BA, MFA)
Notable Works:Sonora

Hannah Lillith Assadi (born 1986) is an American novelist.[1] She is the author of Sonora (2017) and The Stars Are Not Yet Bells (2022).

Early life and education

Assadi was born to a Jewish mother and a Palestinian father.[2] Her father (1943-2022) was born in Safed and fled with his family during the Nakba, living first in Syria and later in Kuwait. He later studied in Perugia, Italy, before moving to New York City, where he worked in the shipping industry and as a taxi driver. Assadi's mother lived in Florala, Alabama, where her family was the only Jewish family in town, before moving to New York City.[3] The couple met in Tribeca in the 1983,[4] and married the following year.[5]

Assadi was born in New York City, and the family moved to Arizona when she was five. She grew up in Scottsdale, and celebrated both the High Holidays and Eid.[6]

Assadi attended Columbia University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in Middle Eastern studies and a master's degree in creative writing.

Career

Assadi wrote her first novel in Paris, although she has said that work will likely never be published.[7]

Assadi's debut novel, Sonora, started as an assignment for her master's degree. It was published in 2017, and received the Rosenthal Family Foundation Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters[8] and was a finalist for the PEN/ Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction.[9] It was also positively received by Huffpost,[10] Kirkus Reviews,[11] and Publishers Weekly.[12] In 2018, she was named a National Book Foundation '5 Under 35' honoree.[13]

Her second novel, The Stars Are Not Yet Bells, was named a best book of 2022 by The New Yorker and NPR,[14] [15] and was received positively by Kirkus Reviews,[16] Publishers Weekly,[17] Vanity Fair[18] and The Washington Post.[19] She teaches fiction at the Columbia University School of the Arts and the Pratt Institute.[20]

Personal life

Assadi moved to New York City in the mid 2000s, and lives in Brooklyn as of 2022.[21] She is married and has two children. She has said she is spiritual, but is neither Jewish nor Muslim, as "religion doesn't speak to her".

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Grisar . PJ . 2018-09-24 . The National Book Foundation Names Moriel Rothman-Zecher, Hannah Lillith Assadi In 5 Under 35 Award . 2024-01-04 . The Forward . en.
  2. News: Kevane . Bridget . 2019-01-02 . The Great Jewish-Palestinian American Novel . Tablet . 2024-01-03.
  3. News: Yoked . Tzach . 2019-02-25 . The Palestinian-Jewish Author Rocking America's Literary Scene . en . Haaretz . 2024-01-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220815131650/https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2019-02-25/ty-article/.premium/this-palestinian-jewish-american-author-has-a-brilliant-debut-novel/0000017f-ef03-d8a1-a5ff-ff8b7f600000 . 2022-08-15.
  4. Web site: 2022-11-08 . Sami Abdul Fattah Assadi . 2024-01-04 . The Andalusia Star-News . en.
  5. News: O'Malley . JP . 2019-04-06 . Traditions and cultures collide in half-Jewish, half-Palestinian writer’s novel . The Times of Israel . 2024-01-03.
  6. Web site: Bolton-Fasman . Judy . 2019-02-11 . Novelist Hannah Lillith Assadi Embraces Her Jewish and Palestinian Identities . 2024-01-04 . JewishBoston . en-US.
  7. Web site: Hoen . Sean Madigan . 2017-05-01 . This Ever-Migrating Curse: Hannah Lillith Assadi with Sean Madigan Hoen . 2024-01-04 . The Brooklyn Rail . en-US.
  8. Web site: 2018 Literature Award Winners – American Academy of Arts and Letters . 2024-01-04 . artsandletters.org.
  9. Web site: Witkin . Daniel . 2017-12-22 . Jessica Cohen, Rebecca Solnit Longlisted For 2018 PEN Literary Awards . 2024-01-04 . The Forward . en.
  10. Web site: Crum . Maddie . 2017-04-04 . A Story Of Friendship And Heartbreak That Definitely Passes The Bechdel Test . 2024-01-04 . HuffPost . en.
  11. Web site: 2016-12-25 . Sonora . 2024-01-03 . Kirkus Reviews.
  12. Web site: Sonora by Hannah Lillith Assadi . 2024-01-04 . publishersweekly.com.
  13. Web site: Hannah Lillith Assadi . 2024-01-04 . National Book Foundation . en-US.
  14. Web site: 2022-10-26 . The Best Books of 2022 . 2024-01-04 . The New Yorker . en-US.
  15. Web site: The Stars Are Not Yet Bells: A Novel . 2024-01-04 . NPR . en-US.
  16. Web site: 2021-10-12 . THE STARS ARE NOT YET BELLS . 2024-01-03 . Kirkus Reviews.
  17. Web site: The Stars Are Not Yet Bells by Hannah Lillith Assadi . 2024-01-04 . www.publishersweekly.com.
  18. Web site: Weir . Keziah . 2022-02-23 . 9 Books We Couldn’t Put Down This Month . 2024-01-04 . Vanity Fair . en-US.
  19. News: Meloan . Becky . 2021-12-28 . 10 noteworthy books for January . The Washington Post . 2024-01-03.
  20. Web site: Hannah Assadi . 2024-01-04 . Pratt Institute . en-us.
  21. Web site: Hutton . William . 2022-01-25 . Hotly Anticipated Second Novel by Hannah Lillith Assadi Out Now . 2024-01-04 . arts.columbia.edu.

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