Elizabeth Suneby — Author
Non-fiction
Iqbal and His Ingenious Idea, 2018
Razia’s Ray of Hope, 2013
Non-fiction
No Room for a Pup!, 2019
Biography
Elizabeth Suneby loves words! Writing helps Liz come up with new ideas, learn new things, figure out her feelings and express them to others.
Writing is also how Liz earns a living. She writes content for companies large and small. She writes magazine articles. And she writes books for children and teens that help kids find their voice in a hopeful world. Liz’s book Razia’s Ray of Hope: One Girl’s Dream of an Education, is based on a true story of a girl in Afghanistan and how she convinces the men in her family to allow her to go to school. While it is hard to believe, 69 million school-age children around the world are denied an education. Liz leads interactive workshops with elementary, middle and high school students that explore the concepts of determination, discrimination and education for all. Read more about the workshops and contact her if you are interested. Razia’s Ray of Hope won the International Reading Association’s 2014 Social Justice Literature Award and was named an Honor Book by the 2014 Jane Addams Children’s Book Awards. It has been placed on numerous honor lists, including the USBBY Outstanding International Books, the CCBC Choices 2014 and the Bank Street Best Children’s Books of the Year for Children and Young Adults. In addition, the Khaled Hosseini Foundation adopted her book into their work with schools and developed free curricula for elementary and middle school educators.
The first book Liz co-authored, See What You Can Be, won a Children’s Children’s Choice award, which means kids voted it a favorite. Her first picture book for young children, It’s a … It’s a … It’s a Mitzvah, was named one of the 50 Best Spiritual Books of 2012 and adopted by PJ Library. A board book version titled That’s a Mitzvah will be available in the fall. In addition, Liz has co-authored two nonfiction books, The Mitzvah Project Book: Making Mitzvah Part of Your Bar/Bat Mitzvah … and Your Life and The JGuy’s Guide: The GPS for Jewish Teen Guys.
Liz, her family and dog live outside of Boston.
Awards
Iqbal and His Ingenious Idea
2019 - South Asia Book Award, The South Asia National Outreach Consortium, Honor Book
2019 - Skipping Stones Honor List, Skipping Stones Magazine, Winner
2019 - Children's Science Picture Book Award, AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prize, Winner
2019 - Green Earth Book Award, The Nature Generation, Short-listed
2019 - Best Children's Books of the Year, Bank Street College, Listed
Razia’s Ray of Hope
2014 - USBBY Outstanding International Book, International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), Commended
2014 - Middle East Book Award, Picture Book, Middle East Outreach Council, Winner
2014 - Jane Addams Children’s Book Award, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, Short-listed
2014 - CCBC Choices 2014, Cooperative Children’s Book Center, Winner
2014 - South Asia Book Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, South Asia National Outreach Consortium, Winner
2014 - Best Books of the Year for Children and Young Adults, Bank Street Children’s Book Committee, Winner
2014 - White Raven List, International Youth Library, Winner
2014 - Social Justice Literature Award, International Reading Association, Winner