Maryam : Keeper of Stories

This acclaimed novel is set during the Lebanese Civil War and offers a rare depiction of women's experiences amid this sprawling, region-defining conflict. In Alawiya Sobh's hands, the details of everyday life mix with female voices from across classes, sects, and generations to create an indelible picture of a climate where violence and war are the overt outbreak of a simmering tension that underlies the life in the region. Here, stories struggle to survive the erasure of war and rescue the sweetness of living, trying to connect the tellers and their audience while transforming pain and love into abiding, sustaining art. Rendered sensitively into English through a close collaboration between author and translator, Maryam offers an unforgettable picture of conflict and its costs.