Maya Abu Al-Hayyat

B. 1980
Maya Abu Alhayat.jpg
Photo by Director Billal Al-Khatib

Maya Abu Al-Hayyat is a Beirut-born, Palestinian novelist and poet living in Jerusalem. She is the author of four collections of poems, including You Can Be the Last Leaf (Milkweed, 2022), translated by Fady Joudah; four novels; and numerous children’s stories, including The Blue Pool of Questions (Penny Candy Books, 2017).

Abu Al-Hayyat is the director of the Palestine Writing Workshop, an institution that encourages reading in Palestinian communities through creative writing projects and storytelling with children and teachers.