A Curious Land -Susan Darraj
- Dr. Hoda Z. M. Amer
- Jul 21
- 1 min read
This #bookaboutpalestine is probably one of my absolute favorites.
It is fascinating, well written, engaging, and detailed.
It begins with a Bedouin tribe in 1948 fleeing the war in Palestine, and the story of a gypsy girl, as she is faced with a horrible arranged marriage. her mother courageously secretly arranges for her to run away on the back of a visitor/ sheikh, who carries her to safety. She leaves behind her life, with nothing but a bracelet made of Liras.
Each chapter is a new segment in time, each chapter is the story of someone. All the characters are connected in that they are members of this small village, and connected in some way to this land.
It shows the struggles through the times of people under occupation, but still with the strength, hope and resiliance to search for love, and recover from loss.
Some stories, like that of Evangeline are heart lifting with hope, and other stories like Salma's story, will break your heart. It ends in the 90's with the story of one of the grandaughters of the gypsy lady, returning to the village after years of living in the USA.
A well deserved winner of the Arab American Book Awards 2016.
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