Scan barcode
A review by booksonadventures
No Land to Light On by Yara Zgheib
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-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? No
4.5
You know the feeling when your entire world falls apart? Time seems to slow down, and your life—the moments and decisions that brought you here—run through your mind. Frantic, jumbled, scared. Yara Zgheib captured this panic and heartbreak perfectly in No Land to Light On.
Here, we meet Sama and Hadi. Both characters are Syrian refugees, but their experiences and motivations vary significantly. Hadi has seen the war; he’s jaded and traumatized and looks to Sama for hope and wonder. Together, they’ve made a home, started a family. But when Hadi returns to Syria to bury his father, his flight home to the U.S. lands on the same day as Trump’s infamous “Muslim ban.” Essentially, he’s locked out.
This is not a linear story, as Zgheib slips effortlessly between perspectives and timelines. There is hurt on many levels, from losing your homeland to losing your dreams for the future. Zgheib brings a human face to the refugee crisis and the impacts that political games have on people and families. This may be a short book, but it packs a punch. I recommend reading over a few days so you can feel with these characters and not get overwhelmed.
I enjoyed the floral language and the parallels with bird migration. A stark reminder that borders are arbitrary and the drive to provide a better life for your offspring is primal, and migration is a human right.
Big thank you to Atria for sharing this ARC with me. This is my honest review.
Here, we meet Sama and Hadi. Both characters are Syrian refugees, but their experiences and motivations vary significantly. Hadi has seen the war; he’s jaded and traumatized and looks to Sama for hope and wonder. Together, they’ve made a home, started a family. But when Hadi returns to Syria to bury his father, his flight home to the U.S. lands on the same day as Trump’s infamous “Muslim ban.” Essentially, he’s locked out.
This is not a linear story, as Zgheib slips effortlessly between perspectives and timelines. There is hurt on many levels, from losing your homeland to losing your dreams for the future. Zgheib brings a human face to the refugee crisis and the impacts that political games have on people and families. This may be a short book, but it packs a punch. I recommend reading over a few days so you can feel with these characters and not get overwhelmed.
I enjoyed the floral language and the parallels with bird migration. A stark reminder that borders are arbitrary and the drive to provide a better life for your offspring is primal, and migration is a human right.
Big thank you to Atria for sharing this ARC with me. This is my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Islamophobia, Pregnancy, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Medical trauma
Minor: Violence and Injury/Injury detail