Against the Loveless World

Against the Loveless World is exactly the kind of thought-provoking novel that I like...

A novel narrated by a Palestinian woman detained on terrorism charges... in solitary confinement in an Israeli prison for 17 years... is a novel almost guaranteed to be thought-provoking because it raises all the confronting issues that have bedevilled the Middle East for so long.

Susan Abulhawa (author of Mornings in Jenin) personalises this political story with a mother-daughter relationship, an examination of women's role in a patriarchal society and a tentative love story. Nahr's Palestinian mother and grandmother are 'experienced refugees' who cope with expulsion from Kuwait when the Americans liberate it from Iraq. For Nahr who had embraced show more Kuwait as the only home she'd known, displacement came as a shock. The realities of her Palestinian identity transform her from a rather shallow young woman into an activist, and then more than that.

Within the cell she has endless time for thinking, and she reflects on the choices she made: a naïve marriage made partly to upstage her best friend in status; friendship with a man-hating brothel-keeper; risk-taking behaviour with men and a tarnished reputation. But she also became provider for the family; enabled her brother to have choices that she never had; and learned to use discretion which turned out to be a very useful skill indeed. She mulls over her angst-ridden relationship with her mother and grandmother, but comes to respect both of them.

Over the course of the book, Nahr's abusive and conflicted relationships become a metaphor for the Arab-Israeli conflict: she has no choice but to deal with oppression, hypocrisy, occupation, exploitation, an inequitable legal and social system and the undervaluing of Palestinian traditions. She copes by rejecting conformity: the only way to tilt the scales a little is to behave in a way that 'respectable' women do not, because 'respectability' gets her nowhere.

Book groups, I suspect, will inevitably discuss the extent to which the human story of Nahr is a vehicle to tell the Palestinian story.

To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2020/12/02/against-the-loveless-world-by-susan-abulhawa... show less

The daughter of Palestinian refugees born in 1970s Kuwait, Nahr grows up dreaming of the perfect life. She finds herself far from this after a brief marriage ends badly, her family nears poverty, and she turns to prostitution. Becoming a refugee herself and ending up in solitary confinement in another country’s prison, Nahr reflects on her life and what brought her to that point.

I’m still thinking about AGAINST THE LOVELESS WORLD after finishing it over a week ago. Abulhawa paints a vivid picture of a Palestinian woman’s life under oppression and her eventual political imprisonment. Somehow within such a dark story, there’s beauty conveyed which gave slivers of hope to an otherwise disturbing narrative. Nahr seems detached as show more she recounts her past and it felt like she was lacking some insight. I’m not sure if this was on purpose as a result of the traumas she experienced or if it was an issue with character development. Even though I didn’t love her as a character, this book will certainly be sticking with me. show less

I thought this book would break my heart because Mornings in Jenin devastated me. And it did… But it did something more too. Unlike Mornings in Jenin, Against a Loveless World was devastatingly hopeful. This book is for all the “revolutionary whores,” anti-imperial feminists, and the dreamers.

I continue to be stunned at Abulhawa’s brilliance, not just in her ability to tell stories, but her ability to challenge discourse I didn’t know - or didn’t realize I didn’t think could be - challenged.

Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa is an intense story about a young Palestinian refugee as she slowly becomes radicalized while searching for a better life for her family throughout the Middle East. Growing up in Kuwait, she learns hard lessons about how women are held to be inferior, and how being Palestinian makes everything harder. I was surprised that the Arab world is not particularly sympathetic to the Palestinian plight perhaps because they want to keep the devastating Israeli-Palestinian conflicts front and center in the world view.

This story gives us a human face to follow and is an interesting blend of fact and fiction. The perspective is unapologetically Palestinian and heartbreaking in it’s content of conflict, show more struggle and resistance. The story of her life is told by Nahr as she is being held in solitary confinement in an Israeli prison. We learn of her younger years in Kuwait, her family’s escape to Jordan and her eventual discovery of Palestine as her homeland.

I actually wanted to like this book more than I did. I have read Mornings in Jenin by this same author and absolutely loved that book. The troubles in that area of the world are on-going and have flared up again recently. I can’t ever see a resolution being found to this situation and my heart actually goes out to both sides. I suspect that was what I didn’t like in the book, it’s total one-sidedness made me uncomfortable. Although it is good to see the Palestinian side represented in literature, I now feel as if I need to read a pro-Jewish book to acquire some balance. 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 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 show more 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

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; show more 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. 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 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 show more 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