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The Hakawati (2008)

by Rabih Alameddine(Favorite Author)

3.95 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

0385664761 (ISBN13: 9780385664769)

languge

English

genre

Historical Fiction

publisher

Bond Street Books

review 1: This book is written in the style of Alf Leila w Leila (1,001 Arabian Nights) and is a masterpiece. It starts off with two main stories: one of Fatima, who goes on a journey to help the king and queen conceive a son; the other of Osama, who journeys to Beirut in 2003 to visit his dying father. From there, each character begins to tell their own stories. The Hakawati intertwines traditional Middle Eastern folklore (Majnoun and Layla), creative retellings of historical epics (Baybars), and brand new fairytales (Fatima and Shams/Layl) with a realistic account of one man's personal and family history (Osama's family). The author begins with the main stories, then delves into deeper layers of stories before popping back up to the surface again to continue where he left off, whi... morele continuing to reference the shorter stories within the larger ones. Reading the book requires stamina and persistence, as well as some knowledge of Middle Eastern culture (or a willingness to research unknown words and references), but is well worth the time and effort.
review 2: I kept expecting all the narratives to relate or to come together. Half way through I realized that is not going to happen. I also felt disoriented at that point. I stuck with the book felt engaged towards the end. It is certainly a good read if a bit disoriented one. My favorite part was about the pigeons and the pigeon keeper. The friendship between two elderly pigeon keepers was touching. Don't understand why Layl would revive his mother after she killed him-I need to think about that a little. less

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