Hassan Daoud is een Libanese schrijver en journalist wiens vroege leven in Beiroet en zijn studie Arabische literatuur zijn latere werk hebben gevormd. Zijn journalistieke carrière begon tijdens de Libanese burgeroorlog, wat hem een uniek perspectief gaf op maatschappelijke en politieke onrust. Zijn uitgebreide fictieve werk, dat romans en korte verhalen omvat, duikt waarschijnlijk in thema's die door deze ervaringen zijn beïnvloed. Zijn werken, waarvan sommige in het Engels zijn vertaald, benadrukken zijn betekenis binnen de hedendaagse Arabische literatuur.
In a village in Lebanon, an old man prepares for his final journey. But right to the end he remains defiant - against his age, his failing body and the whims of memory; against the idle life his children try to impose on him; and, against their indifference, cruelty and greed. Fear arises and subsides in him like a tide.
Set against the backdrop of exile from Beirut, the narrative explores the struggles of a family grappling with confinement and the weight of unfulfilled hopes for returning home. Tensions arise as they navigate their complex relationships, grappling with past traumas and the harsh realities of their current situation. The story delves into themes of belonging, memory, and the impact of displacement on familial bonds.
Set against the backdrop of 1960s Beirut, the narrative offers a heartfelt and humorous exploration of the city's vibrant transformation. It captures the complexities of life during a time of change, highlighting the unique cultural and social dynamics that define the era. Through its vivid portrayal, the book delves into the hopes and challenges faced by its characters as they navigate a rapidly evolving landscape.
When the imam of a small town in Southern Lebanon is diagnosed with cancer, the illness he fears and has expected for years, he takes the radical decision to abandon the life he inherited from his father. He was persuaded to wear the robe and turban in his youth to preserve the family tradition and entered into an arranged marriage. While his grandfather and father were once powerful imams, he displays no interest in the mosque. The wife, for whom he feels no affection, attends to her chores and nurses his father, now sick and bedridden, in his house. Though he worries about his two sons, who were born deaf and mute, he takes no measures to secure a special education for them.