The Fiancée Rode in on a Donkey

by Vénus Khoury-Ghata, Teresa Lavender Fagan (Translator)

A lyrical novel with a poetic narrative about an overlooked individual in Arab African history.

For two days the rabbi rides on a donkey to find the ideal fiancée. Legs and arms shaved, hands dyed with henna, a girl to be married must shine like a mirror. Every girl hopes to be the chosen one and ride off on a donkey to live in the city. The desert is the domain of men; they believe they see oases, palm trees sagging with fruit, when women see only sand on top of sand. A rapid look-around at the girls in the circle was enough for the traveling rabbi to find the right one. He chooses Yudah because of her name, a contraction of Yahuda, and because she lowered her eyes when he looked at her.
The Fiancée Rode In on a Donkey tells Yudah’s story. Instead of experiencing her dream of being chosen and riding off on a donkey to live in a palace, she finds herself in an encampment of tents swaying in the wind. She also doesn’t find the Emir, who is battling on other fronts and soon surrenders. Yudah and the rest of his followers are exiled to Ile Sainte-Marguerite, where she pursues a tireless quest for her future husband in France, seeking a man she has never seen. Will the fantastic destiny of the young girl from the desert ever be fulfilled?

In lyrical novel after novel, Vénus Khoury-Ghata chooses overlooked individuals from history and brings them back to life on the page. Hauntingly unforgettable, The Fiancée Rode In on a Donkey is yet another poetic narrative from one of the most respected French authors of our times.

184 pages, Hardcover

First published May 15, 2013

About the author

Vénus Khoury-Ghata is a Lebanese poet and novelist, resident in France since 1973. Her work has been translated into Arabic, Dutch, German, Italian and Russian, and she was named a Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur in 2000.

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating piece of history enlarged by imagination to fill in the gaps in the story of the young Jewish girl from the desert who leaves her clan to marry the Emir, but ends up on the Paris barricades, instead. I enjoyed reading about her adventures wild and strange, and will seek out this author's other work.

[Joseph Schreiber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each one of Khoury-Ghata’s spare novellas is different. This story of a young Jewish girl from a desert tribe in Algeria who is selected by a rabbi to become a wife of the great Emir Abdelkader seems destined for a future of good fortune. But it is anything but. Abdelkader is soon defeated and imprisoned in France while followers are exiled to a desolate island, the young “fiancée” Yudah with them. What follows is a difficult series of trials until she finds herself in Paris at the age of 15, just as revolution is about breakout. As ever Khoury-Ghata surprises.
A longer review can be found here: https://roughghosts.com/2024/08/23/ea...

[NoID · Rating 3 out of 5]

Une délicate histoire en dentelle, parfois un peu trop fragile.



La jeune Yudah est offerte à un sultan. De gré, de force, on suit son chemin erratique du désert à la mer et du couvent à Paris.



Peut-être un fil trop fin pour une histoire labyrinthique



https://www.noid.ch/la-fiancee-etait-...

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Livre qui mérite d'être plus long, l'histoire de Yudah est très intéressante. Tous les personnages rencontrés au long de l'histoire sont à la recherche d'une meilleure vie ; Yudah, Abdelkhader, Cécile, Dieudonné et Nicolas, et tous rabaissés par la réalité des choses.