A review by manureads
The Stone of Laughter by Hoda Barakat

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
My feelings on this book are a mixed bag. It definitely left a strong impression on me, it was heartbreaking at times and infuriating at others – I honestly wouldn’t know where to start. The most refined thoughts I have concern translations: it’s what I’m sharing here and even then we’re still in shaky territory so bear with me! 
 
The Stone of Laughter is the story of Khalil, a gay man living in Beirut in the middle of the Lebanese civil war. There was a lot in this book that I recognized from stories in my own family: the places mentioned, anecdotes, the food and I liked the slow-paced, metaphorical writing style. At the same time the stylistic choices felt rough around the edges at times: the changes in POV were abrupt, sometimes mid-paragraph, some sentences were very long and the transitions between past and present were sometimes confusing. None of it significantly impacted my enjoyment whilst reading, but it did make me wonder. 
 
Writing and translating are cultural. This book definitely made me wonder whether the stylistic elements that bothered me were due to cultural differences or were really the consequences of translation. I grew up with Arabic spoken all around me so I am in this weird place where I know how the language sounds, despite not understanding it. Was this translation the best it could be because it still captured the essence of the text? or was it, at most, decent and in crossing the distance between Arabic and French, the story suffered some stylistic distortions? 
 
I read an author interview where Hoda Barakat said she changed her French translators with every book because, as someone who also spoke French but wrote in Arabic, she was never satisfied even if the translation was objectively good. This definitely shows how difficult an exercise translation can be but when reading in translation, I always think it’s worth asking yourself if you’re bringing your own cultural assumptions to the table before dismissing a story as “lost in translation”. 
 
Right now, I am inclined to blame the translation for the few qualms I have about the writing but this is only something I will be able to confirm – or not – as I read more Lebanese fiction. The Stone of Laughter is definitely going into my re-read pile. If you’re looking for good Lebanese literature, I definitely recommend this book and if you’re reading in English or French try not to let the hiccups of translation stop you from enjoying the experience. 
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