The Good Deed
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Set in 2018 against the ironic backdrop of an overcrowded, fetid refugee camp on the beautiful, Homeric island of Samos in Greece, The Good Deed follows the stories of five women: Amina, who is nineteen and has just been released from one of Bashar al-Assad's secret and torture-ridden prisons in Syria; Leila, a Syrian widow with two little sons, who has lost her daughter and granddaughter to smugglers on a Turkish beach; Nafisa, who survived civil war and gang rape in Sudan only to see her entire family murdered, save for one daughter; Farah, Leila's lost daughter; and finally, an American named Hilma, who came from New York to Samos to escape her own dark secret, only to become entangled in conflict with the very people she wishes to help.
Drawing from four years of interviews with refugees on Samos, along with twelve previous years of work on the Iraq War, Benedict has written The Good Deed as a series of lyrical, intensely felt alternating voices, following these women’s everyday lives in the camp, as well each of their backstories—stories of families, love, secrets, violence, war, and flight. When Hilma, the American, unwittingly does a “good deed,” she triggers a crisis that brings her and the refugee women into a conflict that escalates dramatically as each character struggles for what she needs.
In essence, The Good Deed is about the struggle never to lose hope, even in the face of war and the world’s hostility to refugees; the complexities that arise out of trying to help others; the healing power of friendship; and the everlasting bonds between mothers and children.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Benedict revisits the terrain of her nonfiction account Map of Hope and Sorrow (with Eyad Awwadawnan) for a complex and heartbreaking story of Syrians living at a refugee camp on the Greek island of Samos. The plot involves a search for a refugee named Farah and her five-year-old daughter, Dunia, who were separated from fellow refugees Amina, Leila, and Nafisa when the boat carrying mother and child capsized at sea. Aiding in the effort are Hilma, an American artist temporarily staying on the island; and Kosmos, her Airbnb host. While Hilma is out for a swim, she happens upon Dunia, hypothermic and near lifeless, and manages to wrest her onto the shore. Hilma becomes possessed by a longing to be Dunia's caregiver, even nicknaming her "my little fish." Kosmos tries to dissuade Hilma; Greek law forbids them from sheltering a refugee and they'd be arrested. Parallel story lines follow Amina, Leila, and Nafisa as they seek asylum, encountering prejudice and roadblocks along the way. Near the end, Benedict reveals the hidden reason for Hilma's desperation to take custody of Dunia. Long scenes of dialogue between the refugees, their advocates, and interrogating authorities read like transcriptions, but each of the characters' perspectives is nuanced and carefully wrought. Benedict has crafted an involving tale of a humanitarian crisis. This review has been updated for clarity.
