The Hakawati

“Here it comes, the book of the year, on its own magic carpet. No book this bewitching has ever felt so important; no book this important has ever been so lovingly enchanted. The Hakawati is both a snapshot of our current crisis, and a story for the ages. What else can we ask the djinn of literature for?” —Andrew Sean Greer, author of Coco Villa and Less

In 2003, Osama al-Kharrat returns to Beirut after many years in America to stand vigil at his father’s deathbed. As the family gathers, stories begin to unfold: Osama’s grandfather was a hakawati, or storyteller, and his bewitching tales are interwoven with classic stories of the Middle East. Here are Abraham and Isaac; Ishmael, father of the Arab tribes; the beautiful Fatima; Baybars, the slave prince who vanquished the Crusaders; and a host of mischievous imps. Through Osama, we also enter the world of the contemporary Lebanese men and women whose stories tell a larger tale, both heartbreaking and hilarious, of war, conflicted identity, and survival. With The Hakawati, Rabih Alameddine has given us an Arabian Nights for this century.

“Stunning.” —The New York Times Book Review

“A rollicking good read.” —The Globe and Mail

“Sharp, seductive storytelling.” —O, The Oprah Magazine