As I’m currently on holiday I couldn’t find many times to come on here and discuss the sections as frequently as I would have liked.
But I don’t want to miss this last chance of sharing my thoughts on the novel.
I am very, very thankful that I got to read it. So firstly, thanks to Orell Füssli for gifting us this book. Secondly, thanks to Zoulfa Katouh for putting this thought-provoking, tough and bittersweet story out there. It seems wrong to say that I enjoyed to read it, as the main theme is so dark and horrible, but Zoulfa does a very good job weaving in hopeful and lighter moments. It’s this combination that makes us root for all the people we meet - even Am.
On the whole, the characters are all written with so much depth. Not just the main ones but also Dr. Ziad and Nour for example. Their actions in these horrific circumstances seemed all very authentic and it was very easy to empathise with them.
There were a few moments that broke my heart (the bombing of the hospital for example), but I do share the thoughts with many other readers that the revelation of Layla’s situation was absolutely gut-wrenching - and yet also made so much sense. Layla and Khawf both were such powerful storydrivers! Khawf symbolising fear in Salama’s life and Layla countering this with her embodying hope. Wonderfully written!
Though the love story threw me off a bit at the beginning, I was glad that it was there in the end, as it lifted some of the heaviness of the setting and also made me swoon here and there. Kenan is such a lovely young man!
I’m ashamed to admit that I don’t know much about the Syrian war, but it made me think a lot, and I do plan on informing myself more on this.
For my question for Zoulfa I’d piggy back on MDSOMA ‘s question. I’d love to know the intention behind the epilogue.
In my opinion, it’s good that there is one. As much as I’m a fan of open endings, this story, though spiked with hopeful glimpses here and there, was in need of some light. I’m glad that we got to see a sliver of what Salama’s and Kenan’s life looked after the horrific experiences.
A second question would be how long it took Zoulfa to write the book. As this is a very mentally challanging story, I’d guess that it wasn’t written in a week. How did you deal with the emotions that came up while writing this novel?
Thanks again to Zoulfa and Orell Füssli!
