Fifi Abu is the manager of youth services in a large urban library system, and oversees services for teens and children at 26 libraries and holds a master's degree in children's literature and a master's degree in library science, both from Simmons College. Her interest in art was evident at an early age, as there are photos of her eating crayons when she was 13 months old. Now she likes to work in ink, watercolor, and gouache, as well as with colored pencils and markers. Ms. Abu proudly served on the 2019 Caldecott Committee, where she had the opportunity to read over 800 picture books. She is the recipient of the 2020 Writers for Diversity Prism Award.

 

Some surprising things to know about Fifi Abu are that she…

 

...once belly danced with a live orchestra in Casablanca

...won a city-wide library poster contest in fourth grade with a poster that said “Hey diddle, diddle, the cat and the fiddle, the cow went to the library”

...spent her 21st birthday with the legendary punk rock band The Ramones

...appeared on television with Governor Jerry Brown of California

...visited the Carmen Miranda Museum in Rio de Janeiro

...drank champagne with Maya Angelou when she was 15

...rode a motorcycle all over the island of Naxos in Greece

...has two bricks from Andy Warhol’s last factory at 860 Broadway

 

 
 

Fifi Abu

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