The Blue Between Sky and Water by Susan Abulhawa

It is 1947, and Beit Daras, a rural Palestinian village, is home to the Baraka family - oldest daughter Nazmiyeh, brother Mamdouh, dreamy Mariam and their widowed mother. When Israeli forces descend, sending the village up in flames, the family must take the long road to Gaza, in a walk that will test them to their limit.

Sixty years later, in America, Mamdouh's granddaughter, Nur falls in love with a doctor. Following him to Gaza, she meets Alwan, who will help Nur discover the ties of kinship that transcend distance - and even death.

Told with a raw humanity, this book is a lyrical, devastatingly beautiful story of a family's relocation, separation, survival  and love.

It has taken me a few days to process this novel before beginning my review as it is very thought provoking and at times painful to read.

Although longlisted for the Jewish Quarterly Wingate Prize it clearly demonstrates the Palestinian view of the conflict and allows the reader to observe the effects that this has on four generations of one family. The characters are wonderfully observed and focus on the strength displayed by the women in this novel. perhaps in a society where the women are seen to play a lesser role. However, in this novel Ms Abulhawa takes her female characters and places them right in the spotlight of this novel and permits the reader to see that it is the women who are the glue that bind a family together.

What this novel does exceptionally well is combine the culture and experiences of the characters alongside a magical realism which adhere perfectly well together. The language is beautiful and on several occasions I slowed my reading just so I could take in the artistry of the prose.

This is an outstanding novel and no matter what the religious or political view of the reader there is much to think about in this novel. There are always victims on both sides of any conflict and this book allows us to see the consequences that conflict has on ordinary people. Without question, this is an exquisitely crafted novel which deals with issues of love, family, fear and ultimately hope.



ISBN:  978 1408865125

Publisher: Bloomsbury

About the Author:

Susan Abulhawa was born to Palestinian refugees of the 1967 war. She is a human right activist and frequent political commentator. In 2000, she founded Playgrounds for Palestine, an organisation dedicated to upholding Palestinian children's Right to Play. Her first novel, Mornings in Jenin, was an international bestseller, with rights sold in twenty-six languages. She lives in Pennsylvania with her daughter.

The website for the Playgrounds for Palestine organisation can be found at: http://playgroundsforpalestine.org/.