2020 Palestine Book Awards Winner 2021 Aspen Words Literary Prize Finalist “Susan Abulhawa possesses the heart of a warrior; she looks into the darkest crevices of lives, conflicts, horrendous injustices, and dares to shine light that can illuminate hidden worlds for us.” –Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author In this “beautiful…urgent” novel (The New York Times), Nahr, a young … novel (The New York Times), Nahr, a young Palestinian woman, fights for a better life for her family as she travels as a refugee throughout the Middle East.
As Nahr sits, locked away in solitary confinement, she spends her days reflecting on the dramatic events that landed her in prison in a country she barely knows. Born in Kuwait in the 70s to Palestinian refugees, she dreamed of falling in love with the perfect man, raising children, and possibly opening her own beauty salon. Instead, the man she thinks she loves jilts her after a brief marriage, her family teeters on the brink of poverty, she’s forced to prostitute herself, and the US invasion of Iraq makes her a refugee, as her parents had been. After trekking through another temporary home in Jordan, she lands in Palestine, where she finally makes a home, falls in love, and her destiny unfolds under Israeli occupation. Nahr’s subversive humor and moral ambiguity will resonate with fans of My Sister, The Serial Killer, and her dark, contemporary struggle places her as the perfect sister to Carmen Maria Machado’s Her Body and Other Parties.
Written with Susan Abulhawa’s distinctive “richly detailed, beautiful, and resonant” (Publishers Weekly) prose, this powerful novel presents a searing, darkly funny, and wholly unique portrait of a Palestinian woman who refuses to be a victim.
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I received a complimentary digital copy of this arc book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.
As Nahr sits in solitary confinement in the Cube, she reflects on the events leading up to her arrest. She was born in Kuwait in 1970’s to Palestinian refugees. After a brief marriage to an abusive, philandering man she resorts to prostitution as a means of survival from poverty. Due to the US invasion of Iraq she is labeled a refugee and sent to Palestine.
She had hoped her marriage to Mohammad would ensure financial security for her family. Ultimately he resumes a relationship with his old girlfriend, Tamara in Palestine. Nahr attempts to support herself with her retail clerk job and eyebrow threading. After she is persuaded by Jumana to work for her, Nahr is able to pay for her younger brother Jehad to go to university.
Nahr, whose birth name is Yaqoot, assumes the name Almas while working with the Muslim men. She denounced her birth name as her father had given her that name which was the name of his mistress at the time. She soon relies on Um Buaq who becomes her protector and an influential person in her life. Nahr eventually finds comfort and refuge within his family.
This is a touching story filled with how life can present difficult decisions and the consequences of the decisions made. There is a glossary at the end of the book which is very helpful for explaining the many Arabic terms used through the book. This culture finds tremendous meaning in food as elaborate ceremonial meals are described as a way of life for families. It’s a bittersweet story of live, life, survival and friendship during a time of political unrest where people are fighting for justice with desperate determination.
Against the Loveless World is a hauntingly beautiful novel that will stay with you long after you’ve put it down.
The book revolves around Nahr, whom we meet in solitary confinement in a high-tech Israeli prison & who spends her days recalling how she landed her there. A Palestinian refugee, Nahr grew up in Kuwait & escaped to Jordan before finally settling back in her homeland, a place she falls in love with but can never really be her home again. Along the way, we learn how Nahr survived in a world where she’ll always be displaced & the lengths she went to not only to save herself but also her family & her homeland.
Susan Abulhawa’s writing is vivid& soulful. She gives Nahr a defiant edge from the start, even as she sits in prison; she’s a woman who uses sarcasm as a shield, who knows how to make a point using the smallest gesture & is also unflinchingly honest. I appreciated the different perspective on the Middle East conflicts & Nahr’s experiences & feelings forced me to question my views. I rooted for her even when she was making decisions I couldn’t understand. But most of all, I loved that this book was built around so many seemingly ordinary women, whose quiet resistance & fortitude are what kept their families alive. One of my favorite lines from Nahr explains their role:
“I endured & waited, because that’s what girls do… We endure & wait, and cater to the whims of men, because sometimes our lives are at stake… until we get even.”
The title of this novel comes from a book by James Baldwin, who wrote extensively about the Black experience in America – “Here you were: To be loved, baby, hard, at once, and forever, to strengthen you against the loveless world.” Nahr’s life in prison is loveless and, in a lot of ways, so was her life outside, but she always found her strength in love – love for herself, love for her family & love for her heritage.
This is a difficult book, but an important one, and easily one of my favorites I’ve read this year.
Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books & the author for the advanced ecopy to review.
What a beautifully written book about Nahr, a Palestinian refugee who tells her story as she sits in the Cube, a solitary confinement cell in an Israeli prison. The story goes back and forth from her present time in the Cube to her time before she was incarcerated. It is dark and disturbing in places as is does include scenes of sexual assault, but it is also a story about resilience, survival, love, the importance of family, and hope. I loved Nahr. She is a complex character, one who’s behavior I couldn’t understand at times, and one who only wanted the best for herself and her lovely family. What she went through just broke my heart. This is truly a heartbreaking and eye-opening look at Palestinian culture. It is one not to be missed. I have not read any other books by Susan Abulhawa but will definitely be reading more by her.
Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the review copy.