Ari Honarvar

Ari Honarvar is an award-winning writer, speaker, and artist dedicated to building bridges between the arts, social justice, and well-being. Her words have appeared in Parents, Teen Vogue, The Guardian, Washington Post, Newsweek, New York Times, and elsewhere.

Honarvar's critically acclaimed debut novel, "A Girl Called Rumi" is a BookFest Award Winner, a Nautilus Award Winner, a Locus Award Finalist, a Foreword INDIES Award Finalist and a Kirkus Reviews best books of 2022. She is the author and illustrator of Rumi’s Gift featuring an oracle deck and an accompanying book of original translations, meditations, stories, and artistic collaboration with the renowned illustrator, Carmen Costello.

As part of her continuous efforts to build poetry and musical bridges across war-torn and conflict-ridden borders, Honarvar is the Iranian Musical Ambassador of Peace, dancing with refugees and conducting Resilience through Joy workshops for refugees and volunteers on either side of the U.S.- Mexico border and in Europe. Due to the program's success, she now offers a customized program to schools, nonprofits, and corporations committed to social justice.

Her recent Washington Post op-ed on Arranged Friendships has elicited an overwhelming response from all over the world. She has been interviewed by different podcasts and publications on the subject including The Atlantic’s Friendship Files and is now helping facilitate other arranged friendship groups.

A TEDx speaker, Honarvar presents at conventions like Comic-Con, universities such as UCSD, nonprofits, churches, and other venues. She has been a guest on NPR, CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN and elsewhere. In live performances, she collaborates with musicians of different cultures and presents a dynamic program including poems, stories, and music.