Hello my lovely readers! I'm definitely finding my niche with fiction that I like to read and I think it comes down to international or Black American historical fiction or off-beat literary fiction. Let's get into it.
SYNOPSIS
In the refugee camp of Jenin, Amal is born into a world of loss—of home, country, and heritage. Her Palestinian family was driven from their ancestral village by the newly formed state of Israel in 1948. As the villagers fled that day, Amal's older brother, just a baby, was stolen away by an Israeli soldier. In Jenin, the adults subsist on memories, waiting to return to the homes they love. Amal's mother has walled away her heart with grief, and her father labors all day. But in the fleeting peacefulness of dawn, he reads to his young daughter daily, and she can feel his love for her, "as big as the ocean and all its fishes." On those quiet mornings, they dream together of a brighter future.
This is Amal's story, the story of one family's struggle and survival through over sixty years of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, carrying us from Jenin to Jerusalem, to Lebanon and the anonymity of America. It is a story shaped by scars and fear, but also by the transformative intimacy of marriage and the fierce protectiveness of motherhood. It is a story of faith, forgiveness, and life-sustaining love.
In the refugee camp of Jenin, Amal is born into a world of loss—of home, country, and heritage. Her Palestinian family was driven from their ancestral village by the newly formed state of Israel in 1948. As the villagers fled that day, Amal's older brother, just a baby, was stolen away by an Israeli soldier. In Jenin, the adults subsist on memories, waiting to return to the homes they love. Amal's mother has walled away her heart with grief, and her father labors all day. But in the fleeting peacefulness of dawn, he reads to his young daughter daily, and she can feel his love for her, "as big as the ocean and all its fishes." On those quiet mornings, they dream together of a brighter future.
This is Amal's story, the story of one family's struggle and survival through over sixty years of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, carrying us from Jenin to Jerusalem, to Lebanon and the anonymity of America. It is a story shaped by scars and fear, but also by the transformative intimacy of marriage and the fierce protectiveness of motherhood. It is a story of faith, forgiveness, and life-sustaining love.
MY THOUGHTS
What an incredibly tragic book. This was Abulhawa's debut novel (it came out in 2006) and it's stunning. The way she writes is beautiful.
What an incredibly tragic book. This was Abulhawa's debut novel (it came out in 2006) and it's stunning. The way she writes is beautiful.
I really enjoy historical fiction that truly educates me. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a long, messy, situation that is obviously still ongoing and mostly likely will continue into the future. I've never understood it, but after reading this book I have a much better understanding of it.
My only complaint with this novel is that it would randomly switch between first and third person when it came to Amal (sometimes in the same chapter!). Other than that...this book was perfect. Tragic. Beautiful.
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