Smadar Shir is among the most important authors in Israel. Her first book was published when she was 16, and in the three decades since she has published 400 children's books as well as seven novels. She has also written hundreds of children's' songs which were composed and recorded for CDs and DVDs. Many of her stories are included in kindergarten and elementary school anthologies. Some of her other books are part of the annual curriculum in middle schools as well as high schools. Along with her personal work in writing, Smadar Shir works as a senior journalist in Yediot Ahronot, the most popular daily newspaper in Israel. Her 2011 book Shirat Miriam, The Song of Miriam, the story of Miriam Peretz, was a bestseller in Israel selling over 20,000 copies.

“Those of us who live and work in Israel as journalists and book reviewers for international publications often have to wait until an Israeli bestseller is translated from Hebrew into English. I, for one, am very excited when this occurs, and especially for a biography like Miriam’s Song: The Story of Miriam Peretz (Gefen Publishing House, 2016) by Smadar Shir. … Miriam’s Song is replete with courage, faith and commitment, it is also about tragedy and sacrifice. It is a book to read to understand what it means to be a woman, a wife, a mother in Israel today.” - Sybil Kaplan, Vancouver Jewish Independent May 2016

“Mrs. Miriam Peretz, a mother who lost two sons in combat when serving with the IDF is important to read. You can extrapolate from her powerful reflections the thoughts of all the other tens of thousands of Israeli mothers, fathers, siblings, wives and children [and even grandchildren] whose lives will never be the same again. "Miriam's Song" is an inspiration that will give chizuk. strength to many of us who might not see the half-full cup that life offers us." - Daniel Keren, The Jewish Connection May 2016