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Palestinian American poet, novelist, and anthologist Nye has made a name for herself with critically acclaimed books such as the autobiographical novel Habibi and the striking poetry collections This Same Sky and I Feel a Little Jumpy Around You. This anthology rivals her previous work in both beauty and inspiration, and was nominated by the Young Adult Library Services Association as one of 1998's Best Books for Young Adults.

But this collection is not for teens only. The personal yet universal sentiments expressed in these poems and paintings will pierce hearts of all ages--as in Sharif S. Elmusa's "But I Heard the Drops": "My father had a reservoir / of tears. / They trickled down / unseen. / But I heard the drops / drip/from his voice / like drops / from a loosened tap. / For thirty years I heard them." Notes on the contributors round out the collection and help bring footsteps a world apart just a little closer together. --Brangien Davis

Product Description
In an unparalleled collection, honored anthologist Naomi Shihab Nye brings together the work of over 120 poets and artists from 19 countries in the Middle East. In turn compelling, lyrical, tragic and humorous, this rich anthology opens the door to the Middle East and beckons readers to explore our common ground. Full-color illustrations.

I first fell in love with Nye's poetry through "The Words Beneath the Words" and recommend all of her works. Educators, activists, lovers of poetry, please read and share Nye's work. They are more important then ever in creating peaceful relationships for the future.


Looking at the space between our footsteps   May 5, 2001
 13 out of 14 found this review helpful

This is a wonderful book. It is full of the imagery and feelings that in turn, delight, amuse and sadden. Naomi Nye has compiled a collection of writers from various countries within the Middle East. Although the writers come from many countries and competing nationalities, there is a common commitment to peace. Since the poems are translated,rather than presented in the original languages, the reader does not have the benefit of the natural rhythms of the languages the poems were taken from. What the translations lack in terms of rhyme is more than made up by the poets' use of Metaphor. One poet talks about "drinking in the melancholy of morning". Another talks about being passed by trains with eyes looking back at you. The language is effective and persuasive. Many of the poems deal with loss. They deal with the loss of loved ones, the loss of time, the loss of relationships, but more importantly, they deal with the loss of basic human rights and something as basic as a homeland. The book has many fine paintings that supplement the text. They are all very well done and add to the feeling of the book. The reader of this book will not only read, but will also have an experience. All the senses except hearing will be involved. I recommend this book to anyone, particularly to Young Adults.


Beautiful and sensitive collection not just for children   December 9, 1998
 15 out of 16 found this review helpful

This book has room in its heart for the passions and longings of writers from all of the Middle East. It offers readers, in beautiful poetry, the longings for place, for a loved past, for a more secure future, felt by Lebanese, Syrians, Israelis, Turks, Palestinians, Iraqis, Saudis, Egyptians, and more. Meticulously designed and printed, it offers art from across the Middle East that illuminates these poems and helps us learn with our children important lessons about that part of the world.


An exquisite book, and not just for kids.   July 7, 1998
 13 out of 14 found this review helpful

I bought this book from amazon.com, fell in love with it & wrote the following review for The Capital Times, Madison WI's afternoon newspaper:

That this exquisitely beautiful, painfully direct and ultimately joyful book, "The Space Between Our Footsteps,'' is published under the imprint of Simon & Schuster's Books for Young Readers is an example of how badly we adults need to learn the lessons we try to teach our children.

The poems and paintings of more than 100 writers and artists from 19 countries are loosely grouped by theme,without a condescending preface or explanations of how to feel when we read or view them...This book is an ideal gift for anyone old enough to read "The Diary of Anne Frank,'' and to know that just as, for Anne, life went on as war went on, so it does today. It is for anyone who thinks he or she understands the conflicts in the Middle East, and for anyone whose life needs a sudden rush of beauty.

(Lin Seagren teaches in Stoughton WI and for the UW-Extension.)