Voices of the Nakba: A Living History of Palestine

by Diana Allan (editor), Rosemary Sayigh (contributor)

***Winner of an English PEN Award 2021***

During the 1948 war more than 750,000 Palestinian Arabs fled or were violently expelled from their homes by Zionist militias. The legacy of the Nakba - which translates to ‘disaster’ or ‘catastrophe’ - lays bare the violence of the ongoing Palestinian plight.

Voices of the Nakba collects the stories of first-generation Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, documenting a watershed moment in the history of the modern Middle East through the voices of the people who lived through it.

The interviews, with commentary from leading scholars of Palestine and the Middle East, offer a vivid journey into the history, politics and culture of Palestine, defining Palestinian popular memory on its own terms in all its plurality and complexity.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ebooks

370 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 20, 2021

Reviews

[Ira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Voices of the Nakba captures the lived experiences of Palestinians displaced during the creation of Israel in 1948. Their voices tell of what they’ve been through, how they’ve stayed strong, and their ongoing fight for justice and identity. Reading their experiences was both painful and incredibly enlightening. It made me truly appreciate the courage of the Palestinian people and their ability to hold on to their history despite everything they’ve endured. Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand Palestine’s history through the lens of those who lived it.

[Muhammed Nijim · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the latest contributions to the history of Nakba. This book is a collection of chapters that were written by different scholars, mostly Palestinians. It's based on qualitative interviews with people who lived the Nakba. So, most of the testimonies are authentic and speak volumes to the misery of the war.