Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands

by Sonia Nimir, Marcia Lynx Qualey (translator)

WINNER OF THE PRESIGIOUS ETISALAT AWARD AN ADVENTURE-FILLED HISTORICAL-FOLKLORIC NOVEL ABOUT A PALESTINIAN GIRL WHO DEVELOPS GREAT HEALING SKILLS AND TRAVELS AROUND THE REGION, SOMETIMES DRESSED AS A MAN Sonia Nimr’s award-winning Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands is a richly imagined feminist-fable-plus-historical-novel that tells an episodic travel narrative, like that of the great 14th century Moroccan traveler Ibn Battuta, through the eyes of a clever and irrepressible young Palestinian woman. The story begins hundreds of years ago, when our hero—Qamr—is born as an outcast, at the foot of a mountain in Palestine, near her father’s strange, isolated village. Qamr’s mother must solve the mystery of why only boys are born in this odd, conservative village. Then, in 1001 Nights style, this tale moves into another. Qamr’s parents die and a prince with many wives wants to marry her. Qamr takes her favorite book, Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands, and flees through Gaza, to Egypt, where she is captured, enslaved, and sold to the sister of the mad king in Egypt. After escaping, she flees to study with a polymath in Morocco. But when it’s discovered she’s a girl, she must leave again, disguising herself as a boy pirate to sail the Mediterranean. Through all her fast-paced battles, mysteries, and adventures, Qamr never finds a home, but she does manage to create a family.

Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Folklore, Historical, Novels

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Donna Capern · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars for those who love journeys of self-discovery and adventure, who loved (or still love) folk tales and who don't need a plot to be too plausible. I especially appreciated the importance of Qamar as a determined woman who refuses to let her gender act as a barrier...to learning, to travel, or to finding what (or who) she is seeking.
I suspect the story in its original language is even more liquid and compelling.

[Katey Flowers · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Peace doesn’t mean death. Peace is another kind of adventure, when things in life intertwine towards growth.”

Book one for #readpalestine week is Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands by Sonia Nimr (translated by Maria Lynx Qualey).

Watch my review: https://youtu.be/dqPPeUrhWXc?si=X8GJz...

🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸

#freepalestine #palestinianbooks #readathon

[Bogi Takács]

This was delightful!

I talked about it on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/bogiperson/status...

Source of the book: Lawrence Public Library (who ordered it on my request - thank you!)

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful adventure that reads like a folktale told around a fire. Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands follows a young Palestinian protagonist from childhood into mid-adulthood through many trials and tribulations as well as many joys, friendships, and adventures - true to its name, a wondrous journey. The ending felt a bit abrupt, but other than that, I really really enjoyed this.

Content warnings: slavery, kidnapping, human trafficking, medical content, grief, violence, medical content, death, death of a parent

[James Frase-White · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've not enjoyed a book as much as this in a long time. It is an adventure story of a Palestinian girl on a journey that will astonish you. Reading it I felt like a child again, enraptured as I was with "Treasure Island" or "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" riding along side her in her incredible truly wondrous journey. Take her hand with your eyes and travel along. Beautiful.

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent adventure tale for adults and children alike. Exotic, unexpected, and surprising right to the very end.

[James E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm really enjoying this. Reminiscent of The Thousand And One Nights so far.

[Lee (Books With Lee) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[Hayden · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite reads so far this year. It’s so rare that I find a book that I just can’t put down.

It’s fast paced, which is very different for me. It reads like a modern-day fairy tale or epic à la Odyssey or Robinson Crusoe. Much like the characters in the book, I was caught up in her stories, I felt anxious, excited, curious, and rife with anticipation after every chapter.

I really appreciated Qamar’s commitment to education, exploration, and independence in spite of gender barriers and social convention.

Incredibly translated!

[Dara Dem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Прекрасна книга, като приказка на Шехерезада!

[Madison Doyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reads like a folktale. We learn a lot about the protagonist, Qamr, but not a whole heck of a lot of the other characters. It is a whirlwind of adventure after adventure, never really stopping in one place long enough to establish roots. It was fun and fast-paced. I could see younger readers enjoying it. I liked the descriptions of all the places that Qamr visited, but again, she never really stayed in one place long enough to appreciate it. I wish that there was more character development, or that the book lingered in some places more than others. I would have liked to spend more time with Noor in order to understand why Qamr really came to love her. I liked the stories of Qamr with Rajna and Fatima, although I was left wanting some more resolution about the mysterious disease that the Princess gave to Qamr. It's like 1001 Nights because there are dozens of adventures within this one book. It was a pleasant, if forgettable, experience.

[Global Literature in Libraries Initiative]

Shortlisted for the 2021 Global Literature in Libraries Initiative
Translated Young Adult Literature Award

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For more info, visit our website!
https://glli-us.org/2021-translated-y...

[2TReads · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable read.

[Anne Herbison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful tale of adventure - and the book has a map in the front!

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands is both a book that the main character Qamar cherishes throughout the novel -and whose cover is a replica of the book itself-and the path that Qamar takes through life. Born to parents who return to the father’s home in Palestine, an isolated village with strict rules where they are ostracized, she then follows the urge to travel and embarks on a series of adventures across Northern Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and India both by camel caravan and by ship.

Misadventure might be a better word for many of these travels as Qamar is dogged by both good and bad luck with one adventure leading to another. The descriptions of the different places she visits and lives in from the very first Palestinian village to Tangier, Eden etcetera are one of the best parts of the book especially the contrast between rich and poor and the different cultures. Along the way she makes many friends who support her or who she cares for with her vast knowledge of herbs. Qamar’s parents had a vast library, she has been a reader all her life and her own mother was very knowledgeable in plant medicine.

The novel moves along quickly as Qamar moves from one adventure to another and if you are a fan of plot over character then this would work more for you than for me even though I found it very readable. However, there is very little character development apart from Qamar and the writing was very simplistic. For me, character and writing are most important in novels and neither was really there in this book . Interestingly enough, after reading some other reviews it turns out that this was longlisted for the 2021 Global Literature in Libraries Initiative Translated Young Adult Award – as well as winning the Palestinian Book Awards Translation Prize of 2021- so perhaps that is why the writing felt a little bare bones.

Qamar is a pioneer for a woman at this time, raised in a village where women are hidden away, she defies convention in the way that she travels alone, dresses as a man and has her own business. She experiences joy and loss and has to use her initiative time and time again and her journey is fascinating. I just found myself wanting more, more about the characters, more depth and so despite much to enjoy in the book, it wasn’t entirely successful for me.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite a 4 for me, but this was a good book to read if you want to follow adventures of a young Palestinian woman around the SWANA region. It definitely has a folktale vibe with how the story borders the fantastic.

[Preslava Peneva · Rating 4 out of 5]

красива приказка за пътуване и завръщане, за бягство от дома и за това как бягството се превръща в дом, за чудните пътешествия из непознатите земи на собствената душа. първата ми среща с литературна Палестина бе повече от приятна. ♡

[Witchy Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐
Full review coming soon.

[Jacqueline Cockrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. Love.

[Charles Sheard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure whether this was even intended for adults, but while a pleasant female-centered adventure to interesting places, the characters are cardboard black-and-white and the plotting irritatingly overcomes all obstacles (with an inevitable bag of gold to end each interlude). At its essence, it is a fairly unsophisticated and shallow fantasy, which will probably fade from memory quickly.

[Sanjana Manaktala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very 1001 Nights in YA fantasy form. Gullivers travel without the misanthropy. Dipping my toes into Palestinian fiction, and this was a sweet fantastical little introduction.

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

closer to a 3.5 or so. I never 100% clicked with this book and I found the pacing a bit weird. But still, I liked the writing style (had some great quotes despite an occasionally choppy translation), I thought it was sweet, and I really liked the ending.

around the world: palestine

[E.D.E. Bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one the saddest yet most inspiring stories I have read - all while also being wildly entertaining and immersive in the traditions of folklore. I really liked it in ways I am still processing. In terms of the content notes on sadness, you can decide whether it is something you should or shouldn't read, with or without reading ahead, but especially if you have read it, I'd love to talk through how it made me feel, as this is a book that I feel offers extraordinary challenges to each of us, while reminding us that those challenges do not often require a mountain to climb - but a step to take.

The character goes through a series of adventures, so exaggerated there is a sense that perhaps the tale itself is a tale, perhaps told by someone experiencing their own grief. I wonder if or how the continued repetition of "now tell me what really happened" is connected to this idea.

It's interesting that people refer to it as feminist, as I felt much more it was an exploration of the vastness of womanhood through a variety of facets and angles (including even, the impossibility of its absense), and all of that in open disdain for those who try and control - no matter who or at what level. Especially poignant to me was the repetition of the capacity for deep, kindness from anyone to anyone regardless of gender or background, juxtaposed with the repeated cruelty of men for broader power and the repeated cruelty of women to stifle or end relationships of all varieties that do not concern them based on petty jealousy to control a person they see as theirs. And weaving all of that on the personal level together with the blatant back and forth of enslavement and wealth on the societal level. As if the story braids together the elements of control versus freedom and then smacks them in your face.

And yet what was even more forcefully delivered - directly challenged - was the idea that no matter what tragedy there is in life, whatever homes, family, footholds, treasures, feelings of peace, joys are lost or taken from you, that *you* still exist. That your tragedies tell a story that is always wondrous. That if you are still here, there is another adventure. And the caution of thinking this is the happiest or the worst time rather than understanding that you are experiencing the greatest adventure of all, one that is unable to stand still except in grief. The stillness of grief is offered, and repeatedly rejected, with the idea that there are paths out of that inevitable grief, people and adventures waiting for you on the other side, even when they are unseen. Unfathomable. This truth cannot be stopped.

And after all that power, all that wringing of your soul, the ending winks at us. Perhaps we can find our inner honorbale pirate again. Perhaps not everything that feels lost truly is. After all, our futures are unwritten.

I am so glad I read this and thank Sonia Sulaiman and Bogi Takács for bringing it to my attention. I had started to read it a while back, but life got in the way. Yet, I am glad I read it now, at a time its jolt has significant meaning for me, and a time I'm a bit more ready to listen to it.

[Stefanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the idea of this book more than the book itself.

This is a fantastical tale that reads much like a fairy tale, enjoyable but not to be taken too seriously. This is an inter generational story of a quest to solve the mystery of why no females are born in a father’s ancestral village in Palestine. The quest takes a twin sister across Northern Africa and into Italy to discover the world.

Like all good fairytales the book is great escapism. However, as the story progressed I found the telling stilted and a bit too neatly tied into a bow. Part of me wondered if part of the problem was one of translation since the original was written in Arabic. The author is an award winning Palestinian writer so I felt like I needed to give her the benefit of the sought. In the end The story is entertaining if somewhat flawed in execution.

[Julie Wilbur · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is written as if it were a translation of another text, a sort of travelogue of a Palestinian woman a few hundred years ago. The story within a story starts with a woman talking about how her parents met and lived in a small village in the mountains. It moves through her childhood with her twin sister, her parents’ deaths, and her first adventure to Jerusalem and the bookstore she runs there. From there, the story moves from country to country, adventure to adventure, as she meets and loses friends and lovers in her life. The book has a sort of old-fashioned Arabic feeling to it, as if it really were written hundreds of years ago (and maybe it was; I don’t know the background of the story). It was beautifully written, and my only complaint is that it was too short (I wanted to know what happened next!)

[Loaay Wattad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a true delight—beautifully written and full of rich, whimsical adventures. It evokes the charm of classical Eastern travel literature, where each chapter stands as a semi-independent journey within a light overarching frame. Reading it felt like being swept into a tapestry of imaginative episodes, each with its own flavor and surprise.

One of the highlights for me was the story of the village at the beginning. It was striking and full of promise, yet I felt it deserved more attention and development as the narrative progressed. It held so much emotional and thematic potential, and I found myself wishing it had been more deeply woven into the rest of the book.

That said, the book remains an absolute joy. It’s adventurous, original, and full of warmth. I truly enjoyed reading it and highly recommend it to anyone who loves stories that blend the magical with the meaningful.

[Chip Nolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book really is a journey. When picking up this book, I assumed that this would be a collection of unrelated stories - it isn't. It's the story of Qamar, whose life is a series of adventures, this succession of twists and turns that she navigates with her wits and knowledge. And what ties it all together, I think, is how relatable Qamar herself is. Her internal commentary as she moves through these journeys feels so real: like kicking herself at being awkward during a conversation with a man she is interested in, or having a laughing fit when yet again something goes catastrophically wrong that takes her off her intended path. I really rooted for Qamar, laughing with her and crying with her, completely on board with the unexpected turns of her life.

[Grady · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think I understood this book. The story was one adventure after another, a sort of Perils of Pauline tour of the medieval Arab world, and pleasant enough. And maybe that’s exactly what it was supposed to be, aimed at middle grade or young adult readers. The main lesson was that kind people are a lifesaver and it is best to be like them, and bad people and narrow-minded people can cause no end of trouble, as does systemic oppression of women. Perhaps one could follow a deeper throughline on how gender-based oppression works - there’s a lot of it, on and off, in the story. In terms of story elements, there’s mystery, chance meetings, magical books, pirates, cross-dressing, shipwrecks, princesses and monarchs, caravans, slavers, herbal medicine, and fate.

[Tamanna Khan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't understand why this book has anything less than 4 stars it's a translation from Arabic. So, give it some grace. it's a Magical Book. For me reason this book was a nail biting experience, I was constantly thinking about getting back to it..It was unpredictable and full of surprises. The character is beautifully presented. At some point of the book especially the ending the was a bit rushed and I wish she didn't finish it with a bit more into the story of actually finding her daughter. But I am glad it ended with a happy note. This book was. If wonders for sure and I recommend you read it if you're into historical fiction and the Muslim world from 14th century

[Gabby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wondrous Journeys tells the story of Qamr, a Palestenian woman who embarks on all kinds of adventures across the world. Some of these happen out of a deep desire for adventure, while others are triggered by fate. The stories at times tragic, are also hopeful in that we see Qamr shapeshift to make the best out of each situation.

From childhood to mid-adulthood, we see Qamr grow and become all kinds of things - all in a world that says women should have limited choices: she's able to be a storyteller, healer, pirate, mother, and many other things. Freedom and a the beauty that being able to choose your own adventure are at the heart of the novel. The story reads like a warm story over a bonfire, with sprinkles of fantasy over and folktale over the everyday, making you wonder "where is this going to go next".

Perfect for fans of adventure with softer world building and stories that center women.