Daniel And Ismail

About the Author: Juan Pablo Iglesias is a commercial and civil engineer, working in medical technology innovation. His first book, Iguales a 1 (Daniel and Ismail), won the emerging author prize for children's literature from the Chilean National Council for Arts and Culture. He lives in Santiago, Chile. About the Artist: Alex Peris, graphic designer and illustrator, lives in Santiago, Chile. He has worked for newspapers, magazines, and has illustrated children's books. He is currently preparing his first animated short film based on the Selknam people of Chilean Patagonia. About the Translators: Ilan Stavans is the Publisher of Restless Books and the Lewis-Sebring Professor of Humanities, Latin American and Latino Culture at Amherst College. His books include On Borrowed Words, Spanglish, and Dictionary Days, and he has edited The Norton Anthology of Latino Literature, Isaac Bashevis Singer: Collected Stories, The Poetry of Pablo Neruda, among many others. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, Chile's Presidential Medal, the International Latino Book Award, and the Jewish Book Award. A cofounder of the Great Books Summer Program, he is the host of the NPR podcast "In Contrast." Eliezer Nowodworski was born in Argentina and has lived in Israel since 1980. He studied history at Tel Aviv University. He works as a translator and interpreter, and his Spanish translations have been published in Spain, Argentina, Peru, and Mexico. Eliezer is a strong believer in multiculturalism and co-existence. Frieda Press-Danieli was born in Uruguay and has lived in Israel since she was twelve. Frieda studied Drama at Tel Aviv University and Translation at Beit Berl College. She translated several books from Spanish and many movies and series for the Israeli Television. Frieda currently works for Haaretz daily newspaper and teaches Translation at Beit Berl College.

“Peris renders both boys in black-and-white against a colorful background, quietly emphasizing their similarities and evoking the constraints of their communities. The story’s gentle emphasis on the power of play to bridge difference is relatable and persuasive.” —Publishers Weekly“Daniel and Ismail . . . tells the story of two boys, one Palestinian and one Jewish, who overcome their parents’ objections to form a friendship on the soccer field. The plot subtly acknowledges that a new generation will have to figure out how to make peace and that it is possible for children to lead us.” —Miriam Udel, The New York Times“...An alter­na­tive fable, one where the joy of friend­ship and the com­fort­ing dreams of their inte­ri­or lives allow Daniel and Ismail to ignore the hatred which threat­ens them…. The book’s end­ing is reas­sur­ing, although not with­out a touch of sad­ness. Jew­ish and Pales­tin­ian chil­dren play togeth­er, both on the field and in their dreams of the future. There is no men­tion of the adults who react­ed with hor­ror at the spon­ta­neous com­pan­ion­ship of two boys with a soc­cer ball on a beau­ti­ful day. Daniel and Ismail is high­ly rec­om­mend­ed for chil­dren and will also be of inter­est to adults who are hope­ful about the future.” —Emily Schneider, Jewish Book Council“This book will not end the heartbreaking conflict in the Middle East, but it can help children see past the news headlines and their parents’ rhetoric and hopefully bring new ideas for respecting the humanity of those involved.” — Stephanie Tournas, Youth Services Book Review“Daniel and Ismail is a remarkable multilingual picture book that confronts the very adult conflicts that kids around the world face, and shows us that different cultures, religions, societies, and languages can all share the same page.” — Crafty Moms Share“A multilingual story (Arabic, English, Hebrew) of hope, soccer and friendship between a boy in Israel and a boy in Palestine. A timely and delightful book—perfect for helping children understand larger conflicts. The bright illustrations and artful layout of the text bring an upbeat mood to the pages.” —Jen Kraar, City of Asylum Bookstore (Pittsburgh, PA)