single part of my multiple selves.” In addition to
her own biracial background, her extended fam-
ily also draws on many other cultures including
Jewish, Persian, African American and American
Indian. Each of these cultures is reflected in her
work. As a result, Nunes’s works outline the pos-
sibility for a multiracial category that resists ho-
mogenizing tendencies. Her works function as a
way to take back her own family history and en-
courage others to do the same.
It is not surprising, then, that many of the pro-
tagonists in her works are attempting to find their
own identities in a world that does not always rec-
ognize the multiracial as a valid identity. In her
collection of short stories entitled A Small Obli-
gation and Other Stories in Hilo, the protagonist,
Amy, attempts to understand her identity given
her biracial ancestry—an ancestry that echoes that
of the author. Her attempts at self-definition be-
come the central theme threaded throughout the
stories. Similar themes are incorporated into her
children’s stories. For example, in The Last Dragon,
the main character, Peter, is sent by his parents to
spend the summer with his great aunt in China-
town. While he resists at first, Peter slowly begins
to change when he spots a dilapidated dragon in
a shop window. His obsession with restoring this
dragon to its former glory becomes a metaphor
for the importance of reclaiming one’s cultural
past. By the end of the story, the dancing dragon
comes to represent the possibility for youth to
reclaim their heritage in a meaningful way—an
important theme for the young audience that this
book is aimed at. Throughout her works the pro-
tagonists learn how to reclaim their pasts and keep
their heritage alive.
Janet Melo-ThaissNye, Naomi Shihab (1952– )
Poet, fiction writer, and children’s author Naomi
Shihab Nye was born in St. Louis, Missouri, to a
Palestinian father and an American mother. After
spending most of her childhood in St. Louis, she
lived for a year in Old Jerusalem (part of Jordan
at that time) when she was 14 and then returned
to live in San Antonio, Texas, where she continues
to live with her husband and son. Nye considers
herself a “wandering poet” and is well known for
highlighting the condition of Arab Americans and
of the many other cultures in the United States.
She received a B.A. from Trinity University in San
Antonio in 1974.
Nye has received fellowships from the Lan-
nan Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation,
and the Wittner Bynner Foundation. She has also
received a Lavan Award from the Academy of
American Poets, four Pushcart Prizes, and a long
list of awards for her children’s literature. Yo u &
Yours, her most recent book of poetry, won the
Isabella Gardner Poetry Award for 2005, and 19
VARIETIES OF GAZELLE, which was inspired by the
events of September 11, 2001, was a finalist for the
National Book Award. She was also awarded two
Jane Addams Children’s Book Awards and has re-
ceived additional awards from the Texas Institute
of Letters, the Clarity Randall prize and the Inter-
national Poetry Forum. Nye is the poetry editor
for The Texas Observer.
Nye’s list of books is ever-growing and spans
several genres. She writes about different cultures
and their ability to connect to each other. Her most
recent collections of poetry include You and Yours
(2005); 19 Varieties of Gazelle (2002); and Fuel
(1998), a collection of poems about life around
the poet. Also known for her young adult and chil-
dren’s books, Nye has recently published Going,
Going (2005), a fictional story about a young girl’s
campaign against big business in favor of home-
town enterprises; and HABIBI (1997), an award-
winning first novel for young adults. Nye has also
written books for beginning readers, most notably
Baby Radar (2003), Lullaby Raft (1997), Benito’s
Dream Bottle (1995), and Sitti’s Secrets (1994).
Nye is also an accomplished editor. The Flag
of Childhood: Poems from the Middle East (2002)
contains 60 poems that serve to create connectiv-
ity in humanity. The Space between Our Footsteps:
Poems and Paintings from the Middle East (1998)
is an anthology of poetry and paintings that ex-
hibit Middle Eastern culture. This Same Sky: A
Collection of Poems from around the World (1996)
investigates the natural world.Nye, Naomi Shihab 221