A Curious Land: Stories from Home

by Susan Muaddi Darraj

Winner of the 2016 American Book Award, the 2016 Arab American Book Award, and the 2014 Grace Paley Prize in Short FictionSusan Muaddi Darraj's short story collection about the inhabitants of a Palestinian West Bank village, Tel al-Hilou, spans generations and continents to explore ideas of memory, belonging, connection, and, ultimately, the deepest and richest meaning of home. A Curious Land gives voice to the experiences of Palestinians in the last century.An excerpt from A Curious Rabab lowered the magad and clapped-clapped to the well in her mother's too-big slippers, the stone jar digging into her shoulder, she didn't, at first, see the body. The morning sun glazed everything around her—the cement homes, the iron rails along one wall, the bars on the windows, the stones around the well—and made her squint her itchy eyes.She was hungry. That was all.They'd arrived here only last night, stopping as soon as Awwad and the men were sure the army had moved south. It must have been the third time in just a few weeks—collapse the tents, load the mules, disappear into the sands. She hoped this war would end soon, and she didn't really care who won, as long as it ended because they hadn't eaten well in two years. In the past few months, her mother had sold all her gold, except for her bracelet made of liras. It was the only thing left, and she was holding onto it, and Rabab realized, so were they all; she imagined that, the day it was sold, when her mother's wrist was bare, would signal that they were at the end.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Middle East, Contemporary, Historical

288 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 31, 2015

About the author

Susan Muaddi Darraj won the 2016 American Book Award for her novel-in-stories, A Curious Land: Stories from Home.

Her new novel, Behind You Is the Sea (Harper Collins, 2024) is set in Baltimore and follows the stories of a Palestinian American immigrant community.

Her previous short story collection, The Inheritance of Exile, was honored by the U.S. State Department’s Arabic Book Program.

She was named a 2016 USA Ford Fellow, and she has received awards for her writing from the Maryland State Arts Council and the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance.

Her new children's chapter book series, FARAH ROCKS, was published from Capstone Books in January 2020. It is the first children's book series to feature an Arab American protagonist.

A Philadelphia native, she currently lives in Baltimore. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter @SusanDarraj.

Reviews

[Michael B Tager · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love books of connected short stories, but they're so often more miss than hit. This is not one of those, probably because the author wisely centered it, not around a person, but a town. And she wasn't constrained by time or even space; the book takes place over decades and continents, even as it focuses on this one village in Palestine. It was just remarkably done. The stories are powerful and speak to a situation that isn't written about enough.

[Laila Taji · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome - recommend to anyone! I love short stories that can stand alone but also link together. This book was a wonderful read - I couldn't put it down.

[Dan]

What did I think? I loved it, Goodreads, I loved it. Full disclosure, though: I went to school with the author. Still, I don't read or like just anything, and in fact I tend to go more for thrillers or mysteries or straight horror. But A Curious Land gripped me from the start. Darraj weaves a complex literal tapestry of one small Palestinian village over the course of many decades, and although there are a plethora of characters, none are lost in the shuffle. Indeed, each chapter is so carefully written that one feels a kinship with the protagonist, no matter the reader's own background. A Curious Land is both entertaining and instructive, humanizing a part of the world that most Westerners know precious little about.

[Iris (Yi Youn) Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely stunning collection of short stories about a Palestinian village spanning generations and continents.

[Rosalia Scalia · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading A Curious Land: Stories From Home, it’s immediately apparent to me why it won the Grace Paley Prize in Short Fiction in 2014. Published by The University of Massachusetts Press, the collection contains nine stories depicting the lives of various inhabitants of a Palestinian West Bank village, Tel al-Hilou. The characters who live in Palestine in the last century link to their descendants, and readers care and worry about them, suffering with them as they struggle to understand changing times that bring challenges to their long held and cherished traditions.

Although some characters are not revisited directly, readers can piece together how their lives may have unfolded indirectly through other stories that feature their granddaughters or their children as elderly grandparents. Because the stories are linked to place and people, they span generations and continents, exploring what it means to live within that place with people who want to honor those long-established traditions even when doing so is clearly impractical. Place plays such a vital role in these character’s essential truths as human beings, it doesn’t matter what traditions they break or how far they travel, all of them remain connected to the village and each other as if tethered by an invisible thread pulling everyone like the tail of a kite. Muaddi Darraj explores that invisible thread in these stories that ask what it means to belong to a place and to each other, however imperfect they are. I highly recommend this award-winning book.

[Nidhi Shrivastava · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darraj’s illuminating collection of short stories allows her to readers to delve deeper into the lives of Palestinian families and the socio-political and cultural trauma they face as they come to terms with the conflict that has enveloped their lives. There were two stories for me that were my favorite: The Fall and Village Gossip: The View From Qahwah. Both of them explored how trauma is inter-generational and how often pain is kept silent until it cannot be anymore. A must read for the current times we live in!

[Sheila Allen]

Worth the read! Love the characters and following their lives

[David Stephens · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Curious Land is a collection of short stories set in Palestine and covering years all throughout the twentieth century. The stories are slow and quiet and allow for the universality of certain issues like love, fear, and growing up to bleed through. They make it apparent that these things, in many ways, play out the same in different times, in different contexts.

These stories are at their best when they’re showing how people’s personal lives can be affected by larger political forces. In “Intifada Love Story,” a young boy’s flirtations with the neighbor girl are interrupted by troops who occupy the family’s roof because of the view it provides. In “Behind the Pillars of the Orthodox Church,” my personal favorite, the narrator speaks to a loved one who appears to be missing and whose presence slowly fills out through the story she tells.

Yet, too often, the descriptions are just too basic, and it’s hard to get invested in situations that seem like they should be more impactful. I know the stories are meant to be quotidian and not sensationalistic, but, perhaps, they could use more flair in their craft if nothing else. Even the interconnectedness of the stories doesn’t add up to much since recurring characters are mostly just mentioned but rarely built upon or expanded in any way.

There are sporadic moments of genuine anguish and sympathy, but, overall, the collection just feels a little too by-the-numbers.

[Kathy Piselli · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author's Arab-sounding name caught my eye on the shelf while I was looking for a book for someone, and I pulled it out to look at later. Once I started reading, I could not stop. Lots of already-begun projects had to wait while I indulged myself. I loved all the Arabic and translated Arabic. Bless your hands. A'uzu bil-Lah. The "servees". Silly Adil Imam on the TV. The initial story is so mesmerizing - and so Arab in its romantic, thwarted love - I kept waiting through the entire book for a descendant of Rabab and a descendant of Jamal to marry, not knowing their ancestry. There were stories of sacrifice and steadfastness. The creepiness of soldiers on the roof was all that was needed to express the frustration and tension and despair of occupation. Throughout was some truly nice writing, with too many examples to copy here, perfectly crafted stories structurally, and some very memorable characters. I liked Umm Farid "with her stripe of gray through her black hair, like the flag of a meddling, foreign nation". And Miss Salma, like Kanafani's Umm Saad, bearing witness.

[Mackenzie Alderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

In A Curious Land, Susan Muaddi Darraj's complex writing style intricately intertwines nine short stories that span over eight decades. With masterful character writing, characters take on an emotional form expressed through their victories and struggles in their respective stories. A beautiful collection of short stories woven throughout Palestinian history, A Curious Land is sure to become the crown jewel of mainstream Arab-American literature.

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful. I had read Behind You is the Sea and loved it so much I bought this earlier book of hers. I actually think this one was even more beautiful. This one was mostly set in Palestine (rather than the US). But this one is also a series of chapter stories that end up being woven together with some characters in common. Truly beautiful.

[Hal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a beautiful read. I was amazed as I reflected on how one person’s brave decision impacted generations. What a lovely book. It was warm and filled with love. I also now need to visit Palestine to taste the tea

[Ruben Degollado · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve never read a book that accomplished all that this one did. An intergenerational family saga in beautiful prose, and the inner lives of Palestinian Christians and their struggles. All in one book of short stories. Well done, Susan Mauddi Darraj!

[Laura Sackton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really beautiful short story collection.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

So great! I was lucky to get it as an ILL.Hoping that the success of Beyond You is the Sea will put it back in prints.

[Tamsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars; a collection of linked short stories.

[Virgowriter (Brad Windhauser) · Rating 5 out of 5]

An engaging set of (somewhat-loosely) interlocking narratives. These stories follow interesting people who find themselves in situations that feel so true to character and unfold so effortlessly they almost don't feel shaped at all (this is a compliment). Given that they are mostly set in a small Palestinian village, these stories offer (especially to someone like me, who knows very little about this part of the world) insight into a different culture while demonstrating the common humanity that unites us all.

[Zeyn Joukhadar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved A CURIOUS LAND. The stories are masterfully linked by their characters, members of a single village whose tales intertwine and overlap in epic, unexpected ways over the course of several generations, creating a rich, multi-faceted portrait of a Palestinian family. A collection I can't wait to re-read.

[Elias Jahshan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this gem! A lovely collection of short stories which are all linked together by Palestinians living in the same village & their descendants. It transported me to the fatherland and for that I’m grateful.

[rara ➶ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a "must read" for just about anyone: all fans of the written word, anyone who appreciates a good story - and great storytelling. And that's coming from a guy who usually prefers fiction with spaceships and wizards and stuff! I don't normally go in for this sort of straight ahead realism on my off-time, but I was entranced by the intricacies of the stories, and the way they all work together so beautifully. A single line in one story can bring immense catharsis to a plot line from a previous story. It is all really well executed in prose that is at time stunning - striking a perfect balance between simplicity and ornateness. The shifting perspectives give it a modern po-mo flare, but all the stories are set in the recent or distant past. There's romance (even sensuousness), really humane politics, some humor, and intense drama. It's very moving, very affecting at times, but in surprising- not sentimental- ways. The wonder of the book is that it is written in English, which is remarkable given how seeped it is in the culture and reality of Palestine. This achievement has not gone unnoticed, but the hype surrounding the American Book Award and the Paley for Short Fiction is well warranted. These are prestigious awards from people who know what they are talking about! So it's nice to agree with them so whole-heatedly. It's a wonderful book, and you would probably enjoy reading it.