The Parisian by Isabella Hammad
The Parisian, a brilliant debut book by Isabella Hammad, winner of the Plimpton Prize, explores a crucial period in Palestinian history through the travels and romances of one young man, from his studies in France during World War I to his return to Palestine at the start of its struggle for independence.
The Parisian by Isabella Hammad
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A superb work of fiction by a brilliant new voice in literature, The Parisian is lush and absorbing and devastating in its intensity. The affluent textile merchant from the town of Nablus in Ottoman Palestine is the father of Midhat Kamal. He departs in 1914 to study medicine in France and falls in love. He is a romantic, dreamer, and aesthete.
Midhat must figure out how to balance his competing loyalties and the demands of his community when he returns to Nablus to find it under British administration and the entire region bursting with nationalist passion. As the idea of a nation takes shape, the tale of Midhat’s life unfolds alongside it as he and others close to him struggle with what it means to pursue independence in a society that appears to be disintegrating. The Parisian examines issues of power and identity, enduring love, and the eerie capacity of the past to upend the present against a backdrop of political turmoil that continues to characterize the Middle East.
The Parisian is a beautiful, deeply conceived debut from a fascinating new voice in literature. It is lush and absorbing and devastating in its intensity. Although it is historical fiction, the author painstakingly researched the culture and history of Palestine between the two great wars, from 1914 to the ascent of the Jewish state and the Ottoman empire, as well as the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the French and English division of the Middle East. Most Americans are unaware of this era, and what little we do know generally doesn’t match up with reality. This book is more than just a tale about etiquette. The Parisian is a heartbreaking and tragic tale of love that is found, lost, and then lost again.
