I Remember Beirut
Zeina Abirached, author of the award-winning graphic novel A Game for Swallows, returns with a powerful collection of wartime memories.
Abirached was born in Lebanon in 1981. She grew up in Beirut as fighting between Christians and Muslims divided the city streets. Follow her past cars riddled with bullet holes, into taxi cabs that travel where buses refuse to go, and on outings to collect shrapnel from the sidewalk.
With striking black-and-white artwork, Abirached recalls the details of ordinary life inside a war zone.
| Format | Your Price | Add |
|---|---|---|
|
978-1-4677-4458-4
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$11.99 | |
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978-1-4677-7280-8
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$32.99 |
| Interest Level | Grade 8 - Grade 12 |
|---|---|
| Reading Level | Grade 7 |
| Genre | Graphic Novels, Social Studies, Young Adult |
| Category | 5 Kinds of Nonfiction, 5KN: Narrative Nonfiction, Diverse Books: #OwnVoices, Diverse Books: Race & Ethnicity, Diversity |
| Copyright | 2014 |
| Publisher | Lerner Publishing Group |
| Imprint | Graphic Universe ™ |
| Language | English |
| Number of Pages | 96 |
| Publication Date | 2014-08-01 |
| Reading Counts! Level | 3.5 |
| Text Type | Narrative Nonfiction |
|---|---|
| BISACS | YAN012000, YAN006020, YAN012020 |
| Dewey | 741.5'95692 |
| Graphics | 1-color illustrations |
| Dimensions | 6.625 x 9.25 |
| Lexile | 460 |
| ATOS Reading Level | 3.1 |
| Accelerated Reader® Quiz | 167758 |
| Accelerated Reader® Points | 0.5 |
| Features | Author/Illustrator biography, Awards, Original artwork, Reviewed, and Starred Reviews |
Author, Illustrator: Zeina Abirached
Zeina Abirached was born in Beirut in the middle of the civil war. She studied graphic arts in Lebanon but moved to Paris in 2004, where she attended the National School of Decorative Arts. In 2006, she published her first two graphic novels with publisher Cambourakis, Beyrouth-Catharsis and 38, Rue Youssef Semaani. Her short animated film Mouton was nominated during the fifth international film festival in Tehran. A Game For Swallows (Graphic Universe, 2012) has won numerous awards, including being named an ALA Notable Children’s Book and a YALSA Great Graphic Novel for Teens. Je Me Souviens Beyrouth (I Remember Beirut), the follow-up to A Game For Swallows, was published in French by Cambourakis in 2008.
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Awards
- Notable Books for a Global Society Notable Book
- YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens
- Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) Choices
- Children's Book Committee at Bank Street College Best Children's Book of the Year
- USBBY Outstanding International Books List
- Texas Maverick Graphic Novels Reading List
Reviews
Library Media Connection
“This spare memoir humanizes families trapped in war zones, and their experiences should resonate with young adult audiences. Highly Recommended.”―starred, Library Media Connection
The Horn Book Magazine
“[T]he author revisits that era in a loosely connected series of sobering vignettes and impressions, each beginning with the phrase ‘I remember’…. In one particularly striking spread, Abirached envisions the family’s many relocations as the squares of a board game.” —The Horn Book Magazine
Booklist
“Abirached’s childlike memories altogether compose a deeply personal portrait of Beirut unlike any historical account, and for readers curious about conflict in the region, it will provide a useful, humanizing entry point.” —Booklist
Publishers Weekly
“Abirached’s prose and artwork convey, with grace and humor, the way her family’s life during the war shifted from mundane to ominous and back again…. Abirached shares (and readers feel) a loss that cannot be named.” —Publisher Weekly
Kirkus Reviews
“Taken together, her many memories create a distinct sense of time, place, and emotion. Meandering and experimental but surprisingly evocative.” —Kirkus Reviews