Diana Abu-Jaber () is an American author and a professor at Portland State University. Early life and education Abu-Jaber was born in Syracuse, New York. Her father was Jordanian with a Palestinian Jerusalemite mother; Diana's mother was American, descended from Irish and German roots. At the age of seven, she moved with her family for two years to Jordan. She received a BA in English and Creative Writing from the State University of New York at Oswego, an MA in English and Creative Writing from the University of Windsor, and a PhD in English and Creative Writing from Binghamton University. She divides her time between Miami and Portland. Career Abu-Jaber writes about Arab and Arab-American culture and identity, often using the culture of food and food production. Her academic appointments include: Visiting Assistant Professor, English, Iowa State University (1990); Assistant Professor, English, University of Oregon (1990–1995); and Writer-in-Residence/Professor, English Department, Portland State University (1996–present). Bibliography Fiction Arabian Jazz (1993) - Oregon Book Award (1994) Crescent (2003) - PEN Center USA Award for Literary Fiction (1994), Twenty Noteworthy Novels of 2003 by The Christian Science Monitor Origin (2007) Birds Of Paradise (2011) Fencing with the King (2022) Nonfiction/memoir The Language of Baklava (2005) Life Without a Recipe (2016) Young Adult fiction Silverworld (2020) Essays The Other Woman: Twenty-one Wives, Lovers, and Others Talk Openly About Sex, Deception, Love, and Betrayal includes "The Lost City of Love" References External links "My Elizabeth," a short story by Diana Abu-Jaber Portland State Faculty Profile 2011 radio interview (one hour) at The Bat Segundo Show Living people American people of Jordanian descent Syracuse University of Windsor alumni University of Oregon faculty Novelists from Oregon 20th-century American novelists American women novelists Portland State University faculty 21st-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Binghamton University alumni American Book Award winners Novelists from New York (state) American women non-fiction writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers Women autobiographers Year of birth missing (living people) American women academics