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Helen Benedict

Goodreads Author

Born

London, The United Kingdom

Website

http://www.helenbenedict.com

Twitter

helenbenedict

Genre

Fiction, Nonfiction, Human Rights, Literature, Refuge

Influences

James Baldwin, Virginia Woolf, W.E.B. DuBois, George Eliot, Leo Tolsto ...more

Member Since

February 2009

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/helenbenedict

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Helen Benedict is an award-winning novelist and nonfiction writer, and a professor of journalism at Columbia University. Her latest novel, THE SOLDIER'S HOUSE, due out in April, 2026, tells the story of an American veteran of the Iraq War who takes in the widow, child and mother of his Iraqi interpreter who was killed for working with Americans. Alternating between the veteran Jimmy's voice, and that of the Iraqi widow, Naema, the novel asks the question of whether forgiveness is possible in the aftermath of an unjust war, not only between enemies but within families.

Benedict's previous novel, THE GOOD DEED (2024), addresses refugees, the problem with white saviors, and the relations between mothers and daughters.

The Good Deed draws on much Helen Benedict is an award-winning novelist and nonfiction writer, and a professor of journalism at Columbia University. Her latest novel, THE SOLDIER'S HOUSE, due out in April, 2026, tells the story of an American veteran of the Iraq War who takes in the widow, child and mother of his Iraqi interpreter who was killed for working with Americans. Alternating between the veteran Jimmy's voice, and that of the Iraqi widow, Naema, the novel asks the question of whether forgiveness is possible in the aftermath of an unjust war, not only between enemies but within families.

Benedict's previous novel, THE GOOD DEED (2024), addresses refugees, the problem with white saviors, and the relations between mothers and daughters.

The Good Deed draws on much of the material Benedict explored in her recent nonfiction book, Map of Hope and Sorrow: Stories of Refugees Trapped in Greece (Footnote Press) which was released in the UK in June 2022 and in the US in October, 2022.

Kirkus Review called it, "A powerful collection of stories from refugees stuck in asylum limbo in Greece… Gut-wrenching and necessary, this book sharply depicts an escalating humanitarian crisis that shows few signs of slowing down…An important, deeply felt look at lives in constant peril."

Benedict's seventh and latest novel, Wolf Season (Bellevue Literary Press) in October, 2017.

The novel tells the story of how, after a hurricane devastates a small town in upstate New York, the lives of three women and their young children are irrevocably changed. Rin, an Iraq War veteran, tries to protect her daughter and the three wolves under her care. Naema, a widowed doctor who fled Iraq with her wounded son, faces life-threatening injuries and confusion about her feelings for Louis, a veteran and widower harboring his own secrets and guilt. Beth, who is raising a troubled son, waits out her marine husband’s deployment in Afghanistan, equally afraid of him coming home and of him never returning at all. As they struggle to maintain their humanity and find hope, their war-torn lives collide in a way that will affect their entire community.

“No one writes with more authority or cool-eyed compassion about the experience of women in war both on and off the battlefield than Helen Benedict. In Wolf Season, she shows us the complicated ways in which the lives of those who serve and those who don't intertwine and how—regardless of whether you are a soldier, the family of a soldier, or a refugee—the war follows you and your children for generations. Wolf Season is more than a novel for our times; it should be required reading.”
—ELISSA SCHAPPELL, author of Use Me and Blueprints for Building Better Girls

“Fierce and vivid and full of hope, this story of trauma and resilience, of love and family, of mutual aid and solidarity in the aftermath of a brutal war is nothing short of magic. Helen Benedict is the voice of an American conscience that has all too often been silenced. To read these pages is to be transported to a world beyond hype and propaganda to see the human cost of war up close. This is not a novel that allows you to walk away unchanged.”
—CARA HOFFMAN, author of Be Safe I Love You and Running

Benedict's previous novel, Sand Queen, was published by Soho Press in August, 2011. The novel tells the story of a young female soldier and an Iraqi woman caught up in the Iraq War.

“Benedict’s writing is impressive, passionate, and visceral. . . . Reading this book is the best literary path to understanding the particular challenges of being female in the military during warfare.” —Publishers Weekly “Best Contemporary War Novel” citation

Publisher’s Weekly also called Sand Queen “a thrilling and thoughtful new novel.” Booklist said, “Funny, shocking, painful, and, at times, deeply disturbing, Sand Queen takes readers beyond the news and onto the battlefield."

Benedict is also the author of The Lonely Soldier: The Private War of Women Serving Iraq (20 ...more

2 posts
Helen Benedict's Blog

Must a woman write like a man?

Julianna Baggott wrote a great but upsetting column in the Washington Post recently, saying to achieve literary success, a woman had to write like a man -- or more specifically, write from a man's point of view.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/...

Could this be true? Examples crowd my mind. Who, aside from Virginia Woolf and Charlotte Bronte, is an exception? Read more of this blog post »

2 likes · Like • 0 comments • flag

Published on January 05, 2010 15:48 • Tags: literary, male, protagonists, success, women, writers

View all 2 posts »

Combine Editions
Helen Benedict’s books

Average rating: 3.86 · 1,736 ratings · 325 reviews · 26 distinct works • Similar authors

	Sand Queen 3.69 avg rating — 439 ratings — published 2011 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Lonely Soldier: The Private War of Women Serving in Iraq 4.11 avg rating — 304 ratings — published 2009 — 14 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wolf Season 3.99 avg rating — 146 ratings — published 2017 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Good Deed 4.22 avg rating — 89 ratings — published 2024 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Virgin or Vamp: How the Press Covers Sex Crimes 3.92 avg rating — 83 ratings — published 1992 — 12 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Edge of Eden 3.49 avg rating — 89 ratings — published 2009 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Map of Hope and Sorrow: Stories of Refugees Trapped in Greece by Helen Benedict (Goodreads Author), Eyad Awwadawnan 4.55 avg rating — 60 ratings — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Opposite of Love 3.48 avg rating — 73 ratings — published 2007 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sailor's Wife 3.16 avg rating — 25 ratings — published 2000 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bad Angel 3.31 avg rating — 13 ratings — published 1996 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Helen Benedict…

Helen is Currently Reading

Helen Benedict is currently reading

The Good Deed

by Helen Benedict (Goodreads Author)

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Jul 10, 2024 09:52AM

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Helen’s Recent Updates

Helen Benedict wants to read Blue Hours by Daphne Kalotay (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 01, 2026 05:27PM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Blue Hours by Daphne Kalotay. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Blue Hours by Daphne Kalotay <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Helen Benedict liked Ru Marshall's review of The Soldier's House: "The Soldier's House is Helen Benedict at her best. This story of the aftermath of war could not be more urgently necessary as the US once again hurtles into another catastrophe in the Middle East. Benedict has a beautiful descriptive eye and an exemp" Read more of this review »
Mar 21, 2026 07:34PM · see review
Helen Benedict rated a book it was amazing American Trickster: The Hidden Lives of Carlos Castaneda by Ru Marshall (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Rarely have I met a book as edifying, gripping and wise as Ru Marshall's biography of Carlos Castaneda. Anyone who wants to understand how charisma, cults and, indeed, today's politics work, should read this. It gives us the vocabulary we need to com ...more
Mar 21, 2026 07:31PM · 2 likes · like · see review
Helen Benedict and 1 other person liked Leora's review of The Soldier's House: "Thé Soldiers House is à searing and passionate novel about how war affects thé human community of innocents who subscribe to its promise of glory. It explores how mistakely those believing their involvement is à promotion of justice in places besotten" Read more of this review »
Mar 20, 2026 08:35AM · see review
Helen Benedict and 1 other person liked Terese Svoboda's review of The Soldier's House: "Benedicts’ compassion for her subjects foregrounds all her work, demonstrating an ongoing concern for the suffering of others caught in the crossfire of war, a dreadful predicament that seems impossible to avoid everywhere there is conflict today. He" Read more of this review »
Mar 20, 2026 08:35AM · see review
Helen Benedict made a comment on Leora’s review of The Soldier's House " This is a review of The Soldier's House, not The Good Deed. ...more "
Mar 16, 2026 07:47AM · see review
Helen Benedict wants to read The Soldier's House: A Novel by Helen Benedict (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 25, 2026 06:31AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Soldier's House by Helen Benedict. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Soldier's House by Helen Benedict <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Helen Benedict is now following Noreen's reviews
Jan 14, 2026 08:52AM · like
Helen Benedict is currently reading The Good Deed by Helen Benedict (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 10, 2024 09:52AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Good Deed by Helen Benedict. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Good Deed by Helen Benedict <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

More of Helen's books…

Quotes by Helen Benedict (?)

“But fiction is not, as many nonwriters seem to think, a random grab bag of made-up whimsies, as undisciplined and unreasoned as a dream. Nor is it simply reporting with the names changed. It is an amalgam of experience, education, reading, insight, analysis, conversations, observation, and conscious research.”
― Helen Benedict

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“In all the years I’d been gone, she had never been allowed to know where I was, let alone visit or write to me, so my greatest fear wasn’t the snipers or shells or even the hate-filled eyes of fighters, but that she and my home might no longer exist.”
― Helen Benedict, The Good Deed

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Polls

June Side Read Nominations ~ 1st poll
Top 5 Move onto Final poll

Horse

by Geraldine Brooks

5 votes, 16.7%

Weyward

by Emilia Hart

5 votes, 16.7%

Once There Were Wolves

by Charlotte McConaghy

4 votes, 13.3%

Olympus, Texas

by Stacey Swann

3 votes, 10.0%

Writers & Lovers

by Lily King

3 votes, 10.0%

The Book Eaters

by Sunyi Dean

2 votes, 6.7%

The Haunting of Alma Fielding: A True Ghost Story

by Kate Summerscale

2 votes, 6.7%

Wolf Season

by Helen Benedict

2 votes, 6.7%

Harry's Trees

by Jon Cohen

2 votes, 6.7%

French Braid

by Anne Tyler

2 votes, 6.7%

30 total votes

1 comment

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What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Young Adult Book: Mixed-Race Female Protagonist (Cover Has A Bowl Of White Buttons W/One Black One In The Middle). [s]	4	14	Aug 07, 2018 09:53AM

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Helen’s Quotes

“It is hard to determine what is most disturbing about this book—the devious and immoral tactics used by leaders and recruiters to get women to join the military, the terrible poverty and personal violence women were escaping that lead them to be vulnerable to such manipulation, the raping and harassing of women soldiers by their superiors and comrades once they got to Iraq, or the untreated homelessness, illnesses and madness that have haunted women since they came home. The Lonely Soldier is an important book, a crucial accounting of the shameful war on women who gave their bodies, lives and souls for their country.”
― Eve Ensler - ترجمه کوشیار پارسی

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