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Home > Featured Author
Jeanette Winter is the author and illustrator of The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq.
 Jeanette Winter has written and illustrated many picture books, including Calavera Abecedario: A Day of the Dead Alphabet Book,
My Name Is Georgia, and Josefina. She lives in New York City.
The Librarian of Basra is the story of Alia Muhammad Baker, a librarian in Basra, Iraq.
For 14 years, her library has been a meeting place for those who love books. Until now. Now war has come, and Alia fears that the library—along with the 30,000 books within it—will be destroyed forever.
In a war-stricken country where civilians—especially women—have little power, this true story about a librarian’s struggle to save her community’s priceless collection of books reminds us all how, throughout the world, the love of literature and the respect for knowledge know no boundries.
A Note from Jeanette Winter
The invasion of Iraq reached Basra on April 6, 2003. With the help of friends and neighbours, Alia Muhammad Baker, chief librarian of Basra’s Central Library, managed to rescue 70% of the library’s collection before the library burned nine days later.
These events were first revealed to the world by New York Times reporter Shaila K. Dewan, who heard about Alia and the library during a visit to Anis Muhammad’s restaurant, the Hamdan—which is near the library and is known as one of the best in Basra.
Shaila’s translator said Anis had an incredible story to tell about the war, so Shaila made an appointment to talk with him. Alia joined the discussion, and together they went on to share this amazing story.
Soon after the library was destroyed, Alia suffered a stroke and had heart surgery. But she is healing, and despite all, she is determined to see that the library is rebuilt.
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