PBA 2025: Longlist announced in a landmark year for Palestinian voices
We are honoured to announce the 20 longlisted titles for the Palestine Book Awards 2025. This year marks a horrifying time for the people of Palestine — a year scarred by ongoing war and genocide.
Yet, in the face of unimaginable suffering, Palestinian writers and scholars — alongside global voices in solidarity — continue to rise. Through literature, research, and storytelling, they affirm an enduring truth: we are here, and we are here to stay.
This year saw a record-breaking 80+ submissions, making 2025 the largest and most far-reaching year in the history of the Awards. The nominated works span fiction, memoir, poetry, academic research, and children’s literature — reflecting a deeply rooted, multifaceted commitment to the Palestinian cause across generations and disciplines.
From groundbreaking academic studies to powerful narratives written for children, the longlisted books offer vital insight into Palestinian history, identity, struggle, and imagination. Whether addressing the Nakba, the present war and genocide, or future hopes for liberation, these titles contribute to a growing and urgent global conversation.
We are proud to present this year’s longlist of 21 exceptional works:
2025 Palestine Book Awards Longlist
- Abu Al-Hayyat, Maya
No One Knows Their Blood Type - Abdulkarim, Lina M.
It Could Have Been Me - Abourahme, Nasser
The Time Beneath the Concrete: Palestine Between Camp and Colony - Abraham, George (Editor) and Hindi, Noor (Editor)
Heaven Looks Like Us: Palestinian Poetry - Alareer, Refaat
If I Must Die - Aziza, Sarah
The Hollow Half - Brehony, Louis (Editor) and Hamdi, Tahrir (Editor)
Ghassan Kanafani: Selected Political Writings - Dana, Karam
To Stand with Palestine: Transnational Resistance and Political Evolution in the United States - Ebeid, Rifk
Kamal’s Key - El Hassan, Azza
The Afterlife of Palestinian Images - E-Kurd, Mohammed
Perfect Victims: And the Politics of Appeal - El Akkad, Omar
One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This - Matar, Dina (Editor) and Tawil-Souri, Helga (Editor)
Producing Palestine: The Creative Production of Palestine Through Contemporary Media - Mishra, Pankaj
The World After Gaza - Muna, Mahmoud (Editor) and Teller, Matthew (Editor)
Daybreak in Gaza: Stories of Palestinian Lives and Culture - Sabawi, Samah
Cactus Pear for My Beloved: A Family Story from Gaza - Salem, Shadi
Beneath the Gaza Sky - Shambrook, Peter
Policy of Deceit: Britain and Palestine, 1914–1939 - Tarbush, Mohammad
My Palestine: An Impossible Exile - Yap, Chin-Chin
Palestine in the Air: A Cultural History of Palestinian Aviation
We look forward to an inspiring judging journey ahead and invite everyone to stay in touch for the release of the shortlist in mid-July.
