Aya Ghanameh author page

Aya Ghanameh biography

Aya Ghanameh is a Palestinian illustrator, writer and designer from Amman, Jordan. She received a BFA in illustration from Rhode Island School of Design. She also studied Literary Arts & Studies as a minor. Before publishing her own picture book, she worked as a Children’s Books & Gifts Design Fellow at Chronicle Books and later became a designer at Penguin Workshop at Penguin Random House.

Her debut picture book, These Olive Trees, was written and illustrated by her and was published by Viking Books for Young Readers on 22 August 2023. The book is set in 1967 in Nablus, Palestine, and follows Oraib, a young girl whose family is forced to flee while trying to keep alive their connection to olive trees and the land. The book was inspired by Ghanameh’s family experiences in exile. In 2024, she illustrated Dear Muslim Child: Building Self-Esteem and Resilience by Rahma Rodaah, published on 6 February 2024. In 2025, she illustrated Everything Grows in Jiddo’s Garden by Jenan Matari, published by Crocodile Books on 16 September 2025.