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4.57 AVERAGE
4.57 AVERAGE
Beautiful and heartbreaking. And intense. These stories are so important because they illustrate what it actually feels like to be Palestinian - to never be able to live free in their own homeland, to be arrested and tortured and surveilled, to be humiliated at checkpoints or to be humiliated, then not even allowed in at all.
One could argue that this has always been about ethnic cleansing, and it's intensified over the last 130 days with 36,000 unarmed civilians killed. Israel has declared openly that they will never stop if there's even a hint that Palestine may get its own state.
I feel this more deeply from having read these novels. I really cannot recommend them enough, and all of them really HAVE been 5-star reads in my opinion.
One could argue that this has always been about ethnic cleansing, and it's intensified over the last 130 days with 36,000 unarmed civilians killed. Israel has declared openly that they will never stop if there's even a hint that Palestine may get its own state.
I feel this more deeply from having read these novels. I really cannot recommend them enough, and all of them really HAVE been 5-star reads in my opinion.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
I highly recommend this book! It is heavy but beautifully written and such an impactful story.
This was a heartbreaking novel following a Palestinian woman named Nahr, through her life as a refugee and a political prisoner. Throughout the novel, Nahr goes through countless tragedies as she looks to find love, to find her identity, and to provide for and keep herself and her family safe. Through the raw emotion and real historical context, this book provides a really important perspective on the past and ongoing Israeli/Palestinian conflict and tells the story of a woman finding and fighting for empowerment in an environment doing its best to strip it away from her.
This was a heartbreaking novel following a Palestinian woman named Nahr, through her life as a refugee and a political prisoner. Throughout the novel, Nahr goes through countless tragedies as she looks to find love, to find her identity, and to provide for and keep herself and her family safe. Through the raw emotion and real historical context, this book provides a really important perspective on the past and ongoing Israeli/Palestinian conflict and tells the story of a woman finding and fighting for empowerment in an environment doing its best to strip it away from her.
Illuminating. Thank you so much for sharing Nahr with the world - a beautifully written and realistically complex woman in every sense. A must read for anyone wanting to further comprehend the immense human suffering and revolutionary resilience in Palestine. A thorough critique of colonialism/imperialism, misogyny, and gendered violence but delivered through what was one of the most authentic depictions of love I've ever read. 5/5 stars
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
It’s so hard to write a review for a book that is haunting and heartbreaking, eye-opening and uncomfortable and impactful in the way that makes you reflect on the horrible things going on in our world. Told from the perspective of a Palestinian refugee in an Israeli prison, the story is beautifully and lyrically written to put you right in Nahr’s life - and the reader just feels the horror and trauma she goes through, but also the moments of joy and love and freedom and family. These kinds of books are so important to show the reality of what’s going on, but also the humanity, resilience, and spirit of Palestine.
“The park isn't really a park, but an open landscape of hills and valleys dotted with trees and rocks. It looks so much like the landscape of Palestine. Like the view over the orchards Bilal and I used to look upon. I indulge an illicit fantasy of a world that would have allowed us to simply live, raise children, hold jobs, move freely on earth, and grow old together. I allow myself to imagine that the dignities of home and freedom might be the purview of the wretched of this earth. Bilal and I would be in a place like this, perhaps hiking with at least one grown child, a teenage girl. Her father would teach her the names and benefits of all the plants we'd encounter. I would listen to stories of her life- her friends, romantic interests, dreams, and plans. We would eat together as a family and go home tired after a long day of being whole and free on earth. I feel the loss of what we never had, and it feels good to know that my heart stirs.”
“The park isn't really a park, but an open landscape of hills and valleys dotted with trees and rocks. It looks so much like the landscape of Palestine. Like the view over the orchards Bilal and I used to look upon. I indulge an illicit fantasy of a world that would have allowed us to simply live, raise children, hold jobs, move freely on earth, and grow old together. I allow myself to imagine that the dignities of home and freedom might be the purview of the wretched of this earth. Bilal and I would be in a place like this, perhaps hiking with at least one grown child, a teenage girl. Her father would teach her the names and benefits of all the plants we'd encounter. I would listen to stories of her life- her friends, romantic interests, dreams, and plans. We would eat together as a family and go home tired after a long day of being whole and free on earth. I feel the loss of what we never had, and it feels good to know that my heart stirs.”
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
trying in earnest to read more works by palestinian diaspora authors. while this was at times hard to read because of the relentlessly harrowing journey of the main character, nahr, the perspective of a political prisoner on the palestinian struggle in the 90s-2000s is as relevant today as it ever was. really beautifully written, vivid imagery and sentences that stuck with me.