Susan Abulhawa

Bellissimo e indimenticabile.
Leggere questo libro è stata un'esperienza incredibile sotto tutti i punti di vista e mi ha colpito nel profondo come non avrei mai pensato possibile.
È il racconto delle vicissitudini di quattro generazioni di una famiglia araba, gli Abulheja, narrate a partire dal 1948 in parallelo alla vera storia della Palestina, dal momento in cui verranno costretti con la forza ad abbandonare la loro casa ad ‘Ain Hod per essere trasferiti nel campo profughi di Jenin. show more
Un racconto duro e straziante ma al tempo stesso dolce, tenero e nostalgico, scevro comunque da qualsiasi acrimonia e recriminazione ma che ti fa entrare a viva forza in una realtà terribile e difficilissima, finora solo immaginata, ma che adesso queste parole hanno invece reso quasi tangibile.
Ci sono pagine che non potrò dimenticare, che ho letto con difficoltà perché la commozione e quello che sentivo mi impedivano di andare avanti, ci sono immagini che si sono create nella mia mente che non si cancelleranno, ci sono parole e frasi lette che risveglieranno ricordi e c'è la convinzione che quello che viene narrato è la realtà di quanto è successo. E poi ci sono le mille domanda che sorgono spontanee durante la lettura, una su tutte continua rigirare nella mia testa: ma com’è possibile che persone che hanno subito l’infamia dell’Olocausto possano dimenticare così in fretta quello che hanno subito e passare senza alcuna remora dal ruolo di vittime a quello di torturatori? La mente umana è così facile a dimenticare le sofferenze pur di raggiungere un fine, peraltro, in questo caso, alquanto discutibile nella sua legittimità?
Un libro che, oserei dire, andrebbe letto obbligatoriamente anche solo per farci capire quanto grande è la fortuna di nascere in un posto piuttosto che in un altro. show less

Rating: 5* of five for existing when so many want it not to

The Publisher Says: Compiled by bestselling author susan abulhawa, an Arabic-English bilingual anthology of essays from eighteen young Palestinian writers trying to survive the genocide in Gaza.

In early 2024, writer and activist susan abulhawa managed to enter Gaza twice through the Rafah crossing. There, at the Culture and Free Thought Association, susan held a series of workshops for young people who had been displaced to tent show more encampments. The lives of all participants were marked by unrelenting Israeli violence and extraordinary loss—of home, family, safety, education, electricity, and all the structures of life. They’d fled from place to place as Israel’s colonial violence swirled around them, complete with food and water insecurity and constant threat. Still, despite the bitterness of life in tents and the dangers of travel, they came together to share in the refuge of writing and community.

Samya recounts a tender moment with an old man mending shoes in the street, while her cousin Saja hides books in her closet, hoping they and her home will still be there when she returns. Ghassan is haunted by the baby he rescued from the rubble, who for a time became his son. Fatima risks it all retrieve her clothes from a danger zone buzzing with drones and warplanes. Maram’s loving aunt is gone, and chaos inhabits Amr’s mind. Samah, Lubna, Rizq, and Nebal take us by the hand through raining death, trails of tears, classroom shelters, and shared clothes in crowded tents.

Every Moment Is a Life delivers rare, unfiltered portraits of life under genocide, platforming the emerging voices struggling to survive in Gaza today. These essays are raw and real, capturing human moments—buying bread, going to the bathroom, sharing a meal, drinking coffee—all set against the backdrop of history’s first livestreamed ethnic cleansing. With courage, anger, love, agony, and—impossibly—hope, these achingly tender voices from Gaza will stay with us, captured in these pages, forever.

*All proceeds go to the contributors in Gaza and to Palestine Writes Literature Festival

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: The strongly anti-Israel...not anti-semitic, none of this is directed at Jews only at the State of Israel as a political actor...indictment of the genocide in Gaza is going to make a lot of y'all really mad that anyone dares criticize Israel.

There is zero difference between that criticism and the MAGA scum who insist it's un-American to criticize ICE for its brutality.

That is a hill I will plant my flag on. If criticism is not allowed freedom is not present.

The stories, personal ones, told in these essays are deeply affecting. It is the memory-book of a people beinng erased by power structures that simply do not want to accept their existence. I, and I think many of y'all, believe that is immoral. If you don't, then accept that it is explicitly illegal. If that fails to convince you this activity should stop, the course should be reversed, and improvements made in the lives of Palestinians, I think you should be held up to shame and not allowed to forget your complicity in the same crime that gave birth to Israel in the aftermath of the Holocaust.

Enough said. show less

Haunting. There are a few books that have haunted me through the years, books that when I hear the titles take me right back. This will join that very short list. Hair is such a complete character, we understand her thoughts, her actions, whether we agree with them or not. We first meet her in the cube, a new form of solitary confinement, she is now middle aged and reflecting on her last life. This will take the reader from Palestine, to Kuwait, to Jordan and back to Palestine.

She is an show more ordinary girl, friends, loving family, querulous grandmother, until events occur that are not in her control. Nations intervene and move people around that chess pieces, taking away homes, lives, and suppressing those who fight back. We've seen this time and time again, in many countries, but this focuses on Isreal and Palestine. It is heartbreaking and shows how those who are losing everything try to do, fight back with what little us available to them.

It is also a book about women, how they fare in times of conflict, what they are forced to do for survival of themselves and their families. A poignant look at a young woman caught up in the cross hairs of history and a conflict up that is still ongoing. It us hard not to be moved by her story.

ARC from Edelweiss. show less

Where to start? So many thoughts on this book so take a seat, grab a drink, and enjoy! It’s not very often that I start reading a book and instantly know that I will love it, and yet that is exactly what happened today my friends. From the very first pages of this novel I was taken with Abulhawa’s writing and finished it all within 12 hours. This book is extremely intimate and profound, which is why it is receiving a glowing 5 -star rating from me.

From the summary, you know that Nahr is show more locked away in solitary confinement in a place she calls, “the cube.” It takes great skill to transport readers to a highly detailed world within a character’s imagination, and yet that is just what Abulhawa did. Nahr physically can’t go anywhere but within the constructs of her mind. With each chapter we learn more and more about Nahr’s character and come to know her on a very personal level. She is a fierce, passionate, and strong individual who I was deeply invested in her journey. As you read, you learn that Nahr has experienced many traumatic events in her lifetime, yet does not let any of it define her, but instead fuels her to live and love, despite it all.

This novel is not only about Nahr, but it is also about a nation and its people. Pages rife with culture and traditions, I was able to learn about a part of history and a part of the world that is still unfamiliar to me. Set in the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, this story has a lot of history factored in that you will not be able to miss. I encourage you not just to read this book because it’s compelling and written extremely well, but read to learn and absorb the information Abulhawa is feeding to you about Palestine and Kuwait.

In the acknowledgement section of the book, Abulhawa gives tribute to the numerous souls she collaborated with to create this novel. Among them are nameless Arab women who provided insight on what it means to sell their bodies in order to survive. Others include individuals who provided insight on what life is like as a political prisoner. I always appreciate this section of the book because it’s where I’m able to learn more about who and what fueled the ideas behind the novel.

This story is about survival. It is about resistance, family, and friendship. But ultimately it is about love. I grapple with saying I loved a book when it is filled with struggles, tragedy, and based on true life experiences. What I will say is that this is a book you read and remember forever. It is extremely powerful in its effect on the reader because of how raw and real the events and people that inspired it are.

Simply stated, I would highly recommend this book to all readers. show less