A middle grade novel about an American teenager's senior year at the American High School in Beirut, Lebanon.

Lina Elbadawi was born in Chicago to Sudanese parents and grew up in Sudan, Kenya. Her teen novel draws on her experiences at International School of Kenya in Nairobi and Oberlin College, Ohio, where she spent a semester abroad in Lebanon as an undergrad. She penned “Lines from Lebanon,” a popular column for the college paper.

Lina holds an MS in epidemiology from George Washington University and an MD from Duke University. She’s a first year resident in internal medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.

"I think it’s important to travel, even if it isn't a semester abroad or an exchange program. It changes how you see the world and see yourself, it challenges your perspective, and makes you more aware of the interconnectedness of the world. In the long run I think it makes us better citizens and better people."

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