A Land of Permanent Goodbyes

If this book doesn't change your thinking about what it means to be a refugee from a country torn apart by war, I don't know what would?

This is about a family that is torn apart by death, distance, finances.

It is about the horrible people who make money off of these poor people who have nowhere to go and no way to get there.

It is also about the helpers. The volunteers who show up because they heard there was a need and it called them to action, not just thoughts and prayers. About fellow refugees who have just a smidge more and are happy to share it with those who have nothing.

The family is at home, even if it is war outside, they still have themselves; Tareq, his younger brother Salim, the girls Farrah and Susan and the baby twins. He respected his mother Nour and his father Fayed and of course also his grand-mother. When a bomb hits their house, only Tareq and Susan can be saved, luckily their father was at work and is also alive. They decide it is time to leave the country, after such a loss, what is it that keeps them still there? But first, they need to go to Raqqa where Fayed’s brother lives who can lend them money. Yet, Raqqa is deep in the Daesh controlled area and going there is highly risky. But this is only the beginning of a journey which hopefully ends somewhere in Europe in peace and show more safety.

Atia Abawi, an American journalist who spent many years in the middle east as a correspondent and is a daughter of Afghan refugees, has chosen the number one topic in the news of the last two years for her second novel. It is her background, both personal and professional, which can be found throughout the novel; you feel in every line that she knows what she is writing about and that neither the emotions she puts in her characters nor the experiences they make are just invented, but exactly what people undergo. At times, the style of the novel has some traces of journalistic work, leaves the pure fiction, but this does not reduce the quality of the novel at all.

First of all, what I really appreciated was the fact that she does not victimize her characters. Already at the beginning of the novel, they are hit by a major loss, but they keep on fighting and do not rely on others. The risk a lot, see evil deeds committed by Daesh fighters, but still remain human themselves. The part I found especially interesting was Tareq’s time in Turkey. It is not only the large number of Syrians being stranded there and setting up a kind of community parallel to the Turkish, but first and foremost the way they are exploited, how people are trying to make profit from their fate which is annoying. Yet, I guess this is just reality.

It is just the story of one family, however, it represents what many people all over the world go through. None of them wanted to leave their country, none of them wants to live in another country of which they neither know the language nor the culture, many of them believe that those who have died are blessed because they do not have to undergo this. Considering all the negative news about refugees, we should not forget their perspective. Atia Abawi has given them a beautiful and engrossing voice. show less

Destiny is the narrator in this book. While the device didn't work for me, I found the story compelling and thought provoking. Tareq's life turns upside down when a bomb destroys his family's home, killing several of his family members. Soon Tareq, his father and baby sister are going further into the country to visit family to gain resources to try to flee both the increasingly violent government and the rebel groups (ISIS). Soon they are refugees in Turkey trying to save money to get a smuggler to take them to Europe. It is an arduous journey and tragedy strikes so quickly that it is hard to even absorb all that has happened. The struggle of the characters are heartbreaking and the story sheds much light on the struggles of refugees show more around the world trying to look for a place to survive, be safe. show less

This book was appropriately disturbing and is going to stick with me for a long time. I think it’s an important book that has the potential to make readers rethink their perspective on refugees. I loved the unusual narrator, Destiny. I think my students are going to love this book. It would pair well with Alan Gratz Refugee.

Read in day. Easy read. Compelling and currency of subject relevant to readers affected by refugee relocations.
Gritty and definitely realistic. Suspension of disbelief based on author’s background. This book delves into the current Syrian situation with many factions vying for power and the effects upon the people who live there. Explanations of various religious factions and political uprisings are shared throughout the plight of a Syrian family. Many refugee stories are woven into this stark narrative making this not just about Syria but all countries affected by uprisings. Recommend for those interested in the Middle East cultures, refugees, and Muslim religion; young adults and teens; and family survival stories.

"From award-winning journalist Abawi (The Secret Sky, 2014) comes an unforgettable novel that brings readers face to face with the global refugee crisis.

Tareq, a young Syrian teenager, changes his daily routine as airstrikes on his city increase. When his home is hit by a bomb that kills most of his family in one day, Tareq is suddenly a refugee, traveling with his father and one surviving younger sister, Susan, to another Syrian town, then out of Syria to Turkey. When life in Turkey offers little hope, Tareq’s father sends him and Susan to make the treacherous trip to Greece by water. Through incredible dangers and suffering, they meet refugees and aid workers from across the globe. Abawi integrates just enough background information show more into the plot to make the story and characters comprehensible. The narrator is Destiny, whose authoritative voice suits the tragic and dramatic turns of plot. The narrator’s philosophical asides allow readers just enough distance to balance the intimacy of the suffering witnessed along the journey while helping to place the Syrian crisis in global and historical context as part of the cycle of humanity. The direct address challenges readers in a way that is heavy-handed only at the end, but even so it is chillingly effective.

A heartbreaking, haunting, and necessary story that offers hope while laying bare the bleakness of the world Tareq leaves and the new one he seeks to join . (Fiction. 12-18)" www.kirkusreviews.com, A Kirkus Starred Review show less

It is vital that the refugee crisis is told to all audiences, including young adult, and Syria is about as terrible as there is. But, while the characters were okay, the story was kind of dull. The volunteers, in particular, were not well developed either, although I liked Abawi's effort to include their perspective.