Maya Al-Hayat

She has written novels, collections of poetry, and children’s books. She became the director of the Palestine Writing Workshop in 2013. She has written a number of children’s stories, including the award-winning book The Blue Pool of Questions.

Maya received the “Horizons” Scholarship from the Arab Culture Fund for the novel “Nobody Knows His Blood Type,” 2011.

She moved between Amman, Jordan, and Tunis, Tunisia before settling in the occupied city of Jerusalem, with her family. She moved to Jerusalem in 2008. She lives in Jerusalem with her husband and three children.

She has written novels, poetry, and stories for children. She published her first novel, "The Sugar Beans," in 2004, followed by her first collection of poetry, "What She Said About It," in 2007. She made her contributions to the field of children's literature, writing for several television programs for children, including Sesame Street (Arabic version, iftah ya simsim), and produced with them a set of stories, including "Masouda," "The Turtle" and "Kiki and Coco in the Clinic." She presented children's programs such as "Farhan and Friends" for many years on Palestine TV. A couple of Maya's stories are published in other languages, including "The Bedtime Story" in Swedish and "The Pool of Blue Questions" in English. Abu Al-Hayat herself has also translated several international novels into Arabic, including "Kolka" by Bengt Olson, "The Old Man Who Broke All Barriers" by Catherine Engelman, and "The Red Bird" by Astrid Lindgren.

Maya Abu Al-Hayat (1980) is a Palestinian novelist, poet, storyteller, and translator, born in Beirut. She has published three novels and three collections of poetry. Her books have gained worldwide recognition, and some of her stories have been translated into different languages. Abu Al-Hayat also worked as an actress and ran the Palestine Writing Workshop. Abu Al-Hayat played a prominent role in children's literature, writing and presenting television programs for children, including "Iftah Ya Simsim," and was distinguished by her writing of children's stories.

Maya Abu Al-Hayat was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1980, but grew up in Jordan. Her mother is Lebanese and her father Palestinian. She was raised by her aunt. At some point, she joined her father in Tunis. In 2003, she received a degree in civil engineering from An-Najah National University in Nablus.