Code Name: Butterfly

by Ahlam Bsharat, Nancy Roberts

With irony and poignant teenage idealism, Butterfly draws us into her world of adult hypocrisy, sibling rivalries, girlfriends' power plays, unrequited love...not to mention the political tension of life under occupation. As she observes her fragile environment with all its conflicts, Butterfly is compelled to question everything around her. Is her father a collaborator for the occupiers? Will Nizar ever give her the sign she's waiting for? How will her friendship with the activist Mays and the airhead Haya survive the unpredictable storms ahead? And why is 'honour' such a dangerous word, anyway?

Short list for the Etisalat Award for Arabic Children's Literature 2013

Short list for The Palestine Book Awards 2017

Genres: Young Adult, Asia

97 pages, Paperback

Published August 3, 2016

Reviews

[Louise Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Tenderly Wrought Glimpse into Childhood Under Occupation

Code Name: Butterfly by Ahlam Bsharat is a quietly powerful novel that lingers long after the final page. With poetic precision and gentle urgency, Bsharat draws readers into the private reveries of a young Palestinian girl navigating adolescence against the backdrop of occupation. What sets this book apart is its delicate yet unflinching portrayal—not only of the child's inner world, but of the silent burdens borne by her family.

Through the eyes of the young protagonist, we are invited to witness the subtle moments that make up daily life in Occupied Palestine: the quiet tensions, the unspoken fears, and the fierce love that threads through even the most ordinary acts. But it was through the voices and choices of the adults—especially her parents—that I began to grasp the generational weight of conflict. Their attempts to shield and uplift, to nurture while enduring, moved me deeply.

This book helped me understand, in intimate detail, what children in such circumstances must learn to live with—not just externally, but within their thoughts, their hopes, and their silences. It’s a portrait that awakens both empathy and admiration.

I read it with a growing sense of longing: that Palestine might one day be a peaceful Holy Land once more. That its children can dream freely, not under code names or whispered fears, but under skies that promise only possibility.

Bsharat has gifted the world a tender gem—quietly rebellious, deeply poetic, and profoundly human. #FreePalestine #EndtheOccupation ❤️✨️🇵🇸

[Anne with Violets · Rating 3 out of 5]

A teenage girl in Palestine has a box in her chest full of questions she can't ask anyone. Why does her father have to work as a hired hand in his vineyard for entering Israeli territory? Are her friend's father and grandfather the traitors they say they are? Why does her brother marry his uncle's wife after their uncle was martyred by the Israeli occupation forces? Why can't anybody shed a tear over the body of a young man who was martyred while resisting the occupation forces? How long do we have to be pushed around by the growing Israeli settlements? Is there any hope for us?

The narrative is somewhat distracting, but the story of a teenage girl growing up in hope and despair resonates with readers. Will the questions in her heart ever turn into butterflies and fly away? Or rather, will she ever soar like a butterfly? I hope and pray for the day when Palestinians will be able to fly free from the Israeli guns and soar like butterflies.

[Sasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am unsure how I feel about this book. I believe it might be rather beautiful in its home language and perhaps some was lost in translation. It is about a young girl who is dealing with growing up in a war-torn country.

[Nadine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A devastatingly short book of being a teen girl trying to live a normal teen life under occupied Palestine. Yet life cannot be normal under economic hardship, deaths, incarceration and injustice.