This is a story that immediately grabs the reader by the throat with an intensely visceral description of a bomb attack on the first page, and doesn't let go until the end of the book. In fact, this is a narrative that will stay with you long past the reading of it. The central character, Dr. Amin Jaafari is an Arab-Israeli doctor practicing at a hospital in Tel Aviv. Although his life has not been without its challenges, he and his wife are comfortable in their community; quietly recognized examples of successful cultural integration, until the night of a deadly suicide bombing.

In the wake of the attack, Dr. Jaafari works tirelessly to help the victims streaming into the hospital, until the police inform him that he is needed to identify his wife's body. His devastation turns to horror when he realizes that the police believe his Palestinian wife to be the suicide bomber. We follow Jaafari into the hell of emotional chaos that follows, a maelstrom skillfully depicted by Khadra (and translator John Cullen).

Khadra addresses the political and personal landscapes of Arabs and Israelis with a kind of detached objectivity, allowing the reader to fully contemplate the elements of what is good or evil, right or wrong. His writing is infused with an immediacy that mirrors Jaafari's desperate search for answers, for understanding; a quest that is played out off the pages of the book, in the everyday lives of Arabs and Israelis.

An interesting note about the author: Yasmina Khadra is the pen name of Algerian author Mohammed Moulessehoul who originally adopted a woman's pseudonym to avoid military censorship. He published many books in Algeria before his true identity was revealed in 2001 when he left the army for exile in France.

Copyright North Shore Magazine Issue Feb - Mar 07