Mornings in Jenin

Mornings in Jenin, by Susan Abulhawa, is the story of one Palestinian family over four generations. It can be argued, however, that it is also a story about any and every Palestinian family. The novel begins in the picturesque village of Ein Hod in the north of Palestine. The Abulheja family leads the simple life that most Palestinian farmers led before their tragic dispossession in 1948. Love was plentiful in Ein Hod. Love for life, for family, for God, and for the land. This was the essence of a farming society for generation upon generation. The Abulhejas and their countrymen are forced out of their villages and homes only to find refuge in foreign towns and lands. They find themselves in a refugee camp in Jenin, their lives totally turned upside-down after losing everything they knew in their simple but beautiful, Palestinian village. As they struggle in the refugee camp, in the early period after their exile, olive harvest season approaches. Haj Yehya, the family's patriarch, sneaks across the armistice line to tend to his olive groves despite the threat of death from an Israeli bullet. When he returns to the camp in Jenin where his family anxiously waits, he brings them the fruits of his labor, and the labor of generations before him, plucked from their trees in their village. Nothing could stop this old man from returning to his village, but on his next trip, he never made it back to Jenin. That was the last time any Abulheja attempted to return, but the dreams of return only grew stronger. Amal, with a long vowel (a name meaning "hopes" in Arabic), was born in the refugee camp of Jenin to Haj Yehya's son Hasan. Her older brother, Yousef, spent his early years in Ein Hod before the Nakba. Another older brother, Ismael, was taken from his mother's arms during the exodus from Ein Hod. It would be through Amal's eyes, however, that the family's story is told. Susan Abulhawa's masterful writing is delightful to read. She writes with an element of metaphor, undoubtedly owing its origins to the Arabic language, which brings color and feeling to every page of this novel. The characters are well-developed and one cannot help but grow attached to them. After each tragedy, be it 1948, 1967, and 1982, a new generation of the family is born, providing hope not only for the characters, but also for the reader who will inevitably experience a sense of depression in parts of the book. Amal is born into refugee life. She grows up in the shadow of a mother that was devastated by the loss of a child. In 1967, Amal experiences 6 days of horror in a hole in the ground that will forever change her family's life. The father that read poetry to her in the early hours of the morning, the scenes that lend the book its title, is never seen again. Her mother slips into dementia, and her brother Yousef will soon leave to join the resistance. She grows up away from Jenin, and seeks an education in the United States. Her father's wish was that she be educated and a scholarship makes this possible. In her ghorba (life away from home) Amal experiences western life and the contradictions it poses for Palestinians like herself. She will eventually travel to a refugee camp in Lebanon to reconnect with her brother. In Lebanon, she remembers her past, her love for the land and her family, and starts a family of her own. And just as stability seems to be coming back to her life, anchored by the cornerstone of family, tragedy strikes again. The massacres at Sabra and Shatila will devastate the Abulhejas in 1982, just as 1967 devastated them in Jenin, just as 1948 devastated them in Ein Hod. Amal raises her daughter, Sara, as a single mother. She wants her to have nothing to do with Palestine, politics, and the wars that scared Amal literally and figuratively for decades. But a twist of fate, which brings Amal's long-lost brother back into her life, sparks an interest in Sara who is now old enough to start hearing about the secrets of her mother's past. Ultimately it will be Sara, and her generation, which will carry the hopes of Palestine and Palestinians after Amal is gone. Mornings in Jenin is a must read. It is sure to be an eye opening experience for those who know little about Palestine and an eye-watering experience for those who do. Abulhawa's style is magnificent, descriptive and passionate. While the story is fictional, it is built on entirely plausible circumstances and entirely factual events and places. Many have waited for a literary contribution capable of explaining the Palestinian experience to the West. The wait is over, Mornings in Jenin is it. Yousef Munayyer is Executive Director of the Palestine Center. This book review may be used without permission but with proper attribution to the Center.

I love this book and the author’s writing style. This book is heartwarming at times, heartbreaking at others. Always enthralling. The narrative is captivating, drawing you in and helping you identify with the characters. This book is a historical fiction. Parts of it (especially the beginning) reminded me of the writings of Bartolomé de las Casas on the Americas. Later parts reminded me of The Tattooist of Auschwitz. There are multiple love stories explored in this book which add sweetness to a difficult topic. This book tackles difficult subjects very delicately. This book is decidedly Palestinian, though the opinions of characters may not be representative of the opinions of Palestinians. I recommend it for anyone familiar with Palestine or anyone interested to learn more. This book is designed for that. There’s even a glossary of terms at the end of the book for reference. Recommend.

Susan Abulhawa shows great promise in her writing. Her words at times are haunting and reach great depths. I understand the comparisons to "Kite Runner"- and believe with more experience she could indeed reach that potential. It's important for the reader to understand that the author not only combines/changes protagonist, she also combines/changes historic details in the telling of this tale. One reviewer points out that Ein Hod had been abandoned during the time Abulhawa tells of attacks... It's clear Abulhawa is combining histories of many Palestinian villages, and different camps into the experiences of this one family. She is encapsulating the wide reaching Palestinian experience into the lives of Amal and those she loves. One needs only to understand this and know of the various attacks, massacres, forced exodus', hindrances on everyday life and humiliation to see it clearly. The author is not pretending to portray the history of one village/family and that criticism is short sighted. This is the Palestinian experience, all rolled into one family for the sake of telling the tale in novel form. I feel she does a beautiful job of it. There were several sympathetic Israeli Jewish characters, which is of course vitally important in a book of this nature. The author clearly understood that humanity runs on both sides of this tragedy; she just happens to be telling the story from a side most westerners are not used to. Many westerners have been browbeaten into never criticizing Israel and find listening to the Palestinian experience uncomfortable. The telling of these experiences however is not criticism of Israel or Judaism. It is merely sharing the truth from the point of view of a people. These people for far too long have not had a public voice in this side of the world. This fact alone makes this book an incredibly important read. I think one thing that would add dimension and balance would have been to add some three dimensional Palestinian characters that Amal did not like. She portrayed Jews who were against Zionists. She portrayed Palestinians who were against terrorists. She understood the horrors of a people reeling in the aftermath of the Holocaust and she also understands the horrors faces by Palestinians for the last several generations and today. Half of my family is Jewish and we have many Jewish friends. I also work with Palestinians and Israelis from all sides (and are friends with some) and have heard their experiences directly. This tragedy continues today. The heartache will only get worse if people don't try to understand the humanity running through both sides. For that reason, along with the bias of our media I recommend this book to everyone.

A beautifully written and moving piece of historical fiction that eloquently summarises the Palestinian experience. Ms. Abulhawa is truly gifted with the ability to write so poetically about something that is so horrific. This book is not in the least bit anti-Semitic, it clearly and truthfully explains that Palestinians had lived for centuries among Jews and Christians and were in fact conquered by several forces over the centuries —Romans, Byzantines, Crusaders, Ottomans, British— and “nationalism was inconsequential. Attachment to God, land, and family was the core of their being and that is what they defended and sought to keep” (p. 27). Throughout these various occupations Palestinians were always able to live and exist on their land. It wasn’t until the blight of Zionism, which does not represent true Judaism, that things changed.

A great true Palestinian family saga and one of the best books i read in a long time. Language and prose is excellent. Tells the story of a country and people who were expelled, killed and denied human rights.

Heartwarming and truthful account of a family in Palestine. These accounts of history won't be found easily. Needless to say, little by little, books and films have been surfacing detailing the plights of Palestinian life. If your eyes were opened when the native Americans truths surfaced, truths not taught in the schools you attended, this book and many others will do the same. Highly recommended read.

El libro llegó en perfectas condiciones y antes de lo planeado. Es un libro muy cruel, pero se basa en la realidad Palestina. Como siempre, la lectura abre nuevos mundos. Totalmente recomendable.

A must read and the quality of the print is quite nice.

A book so beautifully written but so heartbreakingly tragic. When will the suffering of these gentle, dignified people end ? This book is a moving account of a Palestinian family torn apart by the Palestine / Israel conflict.