Fiction Review: Country of Origin

My reading for the next month or so will be mostly focused on preparing for Booktopia 2022 (click Events and scroll down for more info), an annual book weekend my mother and I often attend in Manchester, VT, at the amazing Northshire Bookstore. It's a weekend where readers and authors hang out together, with author talks, meals, bookseller recommendations, and more bookish fun. The bookstore chooses 8-10 authors with new releases, and the attendees often read the books ahead of time (so it's like a big weekend-long book group discussion!). My first read for Booktopia 2022 was Country of Origin by Dalia Azim, due out April 12, and I absolutely loved this original story of family and immigration, spanning generations. The Northshire staff always chooses amazing books!

As the novel opens in 1952 Cairo, fourteen-year-old Halah has escaped to the rooftop of her family home, as she often does. Young women in her society are strictly controlled and protected, and Halah rarely leaves her home, except when her father's driver takes her to her private British school and back. This time, though, while on the roof, Halah can see fires burning all over the city. It is the beginning of Egypt's revolution to become independent from Britain. As the violence worsens, Halah is pulled out of school, and her isolation becomes even more acute, as does her boredom in being confined to her home. Her father is in the military and is part of the revolution and often has other loyal soldiers to their house on Friday nights. One night, up on the roof, Halah meets a handsome young soldier named Khalil. They begin to meet up there often and talk and get to know each other. They each dream of moving to America: Khalil to escape the war and Halah to gain some freedom. When she turns seventeen, they act on their dreams and elope to New York, where they marry and find a small apartment while Khalil attends medical school. Halah finds she is still isolated and bored, though she does have more freedom. Eventually, they have a baby girl, whom they name Amena, they make occasional visits back to Egypt, and Amena grows up. There are sections of the novel from the different perspectives of Halah, Khalil, and Amena, as a teen and also as an adult finding her own way in the world.

This novel succeeds on so many levels. It is a double coming-of-age story, covering both Halah's and Amena's rocky journeys into womanhood and struggles to forge their own identities. It's a multi-generational family story, weaving together the love and challenges of Halah's relationships with her parents, husband, and daughter, as well as Amena's relationships with her parents. It's a story of immigration and the challenges of two different generations to fit in and find their places. It's a love story, of both romantic love and the love between a parent and child. And it is fascinating historical fiction, covering a place and time that I knew little about. The emotional depth of the novel is deepened by its varied points of view, as the reader sees the world from each of the main character's perspectives. I was completely immersed in the intricate and surprising story, complex emotions, and beautiful writing right from the first pages. I never wanted it to end, and I have found myself still thinking about the book and its characters almost a month later. I loved this powerful, moving story of a country, a family, and how feelings and actions reverberate through generations. I can't wait to meet the author!

320 pages, A Strange Object

Publication Date: April 12, 2022

This book fits in the following 2022 Reading Challenges:

Diversity Challenge

Travel the World in Books Challenge - Egypt

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You can buy the book through Bookshop.org, where your purchase will support the indie bookstore of your choice (or all indie bookstores)--the convenience of shopping online while still buying local!

   

 

Or you can order Country of Origin from Book Depository, with free shipping worldwide.