Daniel and Ismail

Daniel and Ismail, one Israeli and the other Palestinian, don’t know each other yet, but they have more in common than they know. They live in the same city and have the same birthday, and this year they get the same presents: a traditional scarf – for Daniel a tallit and for Ismail a keffiyeh – and a soccer ball. Taking their gifts out for a spin, they meet by chance in the park and soon begin to play together and show off the tricks they can do.

They get so absorbed in the fun that they lose track of time and mix up their gifts: Daniel picks up Ismail’s keffiyeh and Ismail takes Daniel’s tallit. When they get home and discover their mistakes, their parents are shocked and angry, asking the boys if they realize who wears those things. That night, Daniel and Ismail have nightmares about what they saw on the news and heard from adults about the other group. But the next day, they find each other in the park and get back to what really matters: having fun and playing the game they both love.

Daniel and Ismail is a remarkable multilingual picture book that confronts the very adult conflicts kids face around the world, and shows us that different cultures, religions, societies, and languages can share the same page.

Daniel and Ismail is written by Juan Pablo Iglesias Yacher and illustrated by Alex Peris. This book for young readers is translated from Spanish into English, Hebrew, and Arabic.