A review by mariebrunelm
Light in Gaza: Writings Born of Fire by Jehad Abusalim, Jennifer Bing, Mike Merryman-Lotze

challenging dark informative reflective slow-paced

5.0

This collection brings together essays and poetry by Palestinian authors about Palestine. It provides nuanced and scholarly views on Palestine’s past, present and future, in a variety of different domains: agriculture, social media, architecture, ethics, artificial intelligence, education, politics of course, etc. Some essays are more autobiographical, describing in simple words what it’s like to live in Gaza and what it has been especially since the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. The poems bring together all those issues in direct, heartfelt lines.
I thought this was an accessible, well-researched and important book. The publisher is offering the ebook for free and I highly recommend it for a portrait of Gazan society very different from what Western media is used to showing its viewers.
This book was published in 2022, with most of the pieces written in 2021, so it doesn’t take into account the horrific events we are witnessing. However it provides context for the colonial violence and genoc!de perpetrated by Israel, and looks at possible futures for Gaza depending on the reactions of the international community. It is both a love letter to Palestinian culture and resilience, and a plea for help.
 
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