Славејот

by Morgana Gallaway, Љубица Стојковска (Translator)

Пред почетокот на војната во Ирак, семејството на Лејла ал-Гани беше меѓу најистакнатите и најотворените во Мосул. Но, од објавувањето на фотографиите на Абу Граиб, нејзиниот татко, судија под режиот на Садам, станува се поконзервативен и со лош темперамент. Откако била сексуално малтретирана додека работела во аптека во ирачката болница, Лејла, која копнее да стане лекар, станува преведувач од арапски на англиски во болницата во блиската американска воена база, иако мора да ги лаже своите родители за тоа што работи.
Во болницата Лејла го фрла својот хиџаб и не само што започнува врска со згодниот капетан на специјалните единици Џејмс Картрајт, туку започнува и со лекување на затвореници кои се жртви на тортура. Кога насилството во Мосул достигнува треска, таа мора да избере помеѓу своето семејство и она за кое знае дека е добро...

Genres: Fiction, Book Club, Historical Fiction

417 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

I am the author of SUFFER A WITCH (2011), historical fiction about folk magic and the English witch-finder Matthew Hopkins; and THE NIGHTINGALE (2009), contemporary fiction about a young Iraqi woman who works for the US Army in present-day Mosul.

Check out my website for links, information, and news about my latest projects!

Reviews

[Meera · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is absolutely horrible. Horrible. The book itself has already been summarized so I won't go into that in this review. Anyway, I'm Afghan and was raised in a Muslim family and although I no longer practice the religion, I was very offended by this book. Actually it stereotypes people from the Middle East very badly. For example there is not one good Iraqi character in this book. Except the main character, Leila, who isn't even developed and comes off as a major Mary-Sue. You can tell the writer doesn't know a lot about Arab/Iraqi culture and you can also tell it is not an Iraqi person writing it. Of course the main character's father is a "terrorist" and wants her to be more traditional. All her mother talks about is getting her married and how she should be submissive. All the Iraqi men talk about in this book is how much they hate America, and all the Iraqi men in this book have no personality at all except that they are all bad. Oh and the main character gives up everything for her solider boyfriend and that somehow makes her feminist. Also there are so many inaccuracies about Islam and Middle Eastern culture. Sorry my review is so heated but this is one of the only books to actually offend me, it was just so bad. I actually wanted to throw this book across the room when I finished it. Please do not read it.

[Rheese · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reading this book left a very bad taste in my mouth. The characters are nothing but shallow racist caricatures and none of them are likeable. The author also forgoes delving into the social/political complexities behind the Iraq War so that its portrayal can be dumbed down into becoming a simple case of good vs. evil. The worst part is the underlying message behind this book, which is that a woman should give up everything for the sake of a man (who she doesn't even marry in the end). All in all the only thing worth recommending about this book is that you not waste your time reading it!

[Fastener Gal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book kept me riveted until the very end. The only reason this didn't get 5 stars was that I didn't care for the ending.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book on a whim from the library several months ago, and kept putting off reading it. When I finally got a chance to get through it, turns out, I really liked this book. I give it 4.5 stars rounded down though because I'm not sure yet if it's love. I had a hard time getting into at first, but that was more likely of being caught in some pre-holiday bustle and not devoting time to reading. When I finally got a chance to settle in with the book, it was a captivating read. I've found over the years that every now and then I pick up a book about something related to the Middle East. Given the current political environment, I think reading about life over there, whether fiction or non-fiction, is a good reminder of what life as a Muslim in war torn countries is really like. This book has good pacing, well developed characters (for better or for worse), and Leila is a courageous, rebellious, generous, selfish, intelligent, funny, and kind protagonist. In short, she's a "real" person and a feminist to boot. Following her story was encouraging, terrifying, heartbreaking, and delightful. I'd definitely recommend this.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

One reviewer calls this book riveting, so true. I am not likely to forget this story soon. Leila is determined to become a doctor, until the American invasion of Iraq this goal was possible and supported by Leila's relatively progressive family. The occupation of Iraq dashes Leila's hopes of personal agency and fulfillment. She persists though and takes a perilous job at an American hospital in Mosul. The suspense is painful as each day we wonder, will this headstrong young woman survive? Addressing the regression in personal freedoms in the Iraqi war zone, larger issues of who is profiting from this grand tragedy, why it is continuing are addressed in chilling detail. The imagery is searing, yet rewarding and not for the faint of heart.

[Stefani]

the story its trying to tell is equal parts cry, anger and disbelief yet the writing is just not good enough and am conflicted and wont rate this

[Aisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book fell really neatly into the stereotypical Iraqi Muslim woman yearning to be free and wanting to escape from her oppressive/fanatical parents theme. However, it has really interesting twists and shows the perspective of the Iraq war from the American soldiers who fight there....honestly, I just liked the romance.

[Gordana Manoleva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Книга исполнета со предизвици, да го преживееш секој ден, бомбаши самоубијци да ти е нормално дневно случување, да работиш со “непријателот” и да му пркосиш на традиционалното , да си ја сакаш фамилијата да си го мразиш сопствениот татко.
Да живееш во Ирак и да останеш жив .
Да живееш со татко муџахедин или да го избереш ризикот за нормална иднина и живот.
Да бидеш двоен шпион а да останеш жив.
Да бидеш муслиманка а да го сакаш непријателот.
Напнат и трогателен роман.
Препорачувам

[Наташа Алексовска]

Лејла ал – Гани од Мосул, откако ќе заврши универзитет во Каиро ќе започна да работи во болница Ал – Рази. Подоцна ќе замина на работа во американска база. Но, оттогаш ќе се појават пречки во животот на Лејла. Ќе биде ставена на испит меѓу љубовта и смртта. Тие две злодела со подеднаква тежина на свој начин. Кој ќе биде избор на Лејла?

[Carla Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adrenaline fueled

I could not read this book fast enough as you journey with Leila on her mission to freedom. I found myself holding my breath at times as I read what would happen next!

[Chris Daily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much too long and dragged out a story. It lost the excitement and intensity of the dangers Leila faced and the constrictions on her life as a Muslim female, and her character was flat, hers and her handsome American captain's.

[Jaime · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. I wanted to like this, but I feel it just wasn't done well enough to actually like it. Main character was a total Mary Sue and few other characters had redeeming qualities.

[Mary Sutherland · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books ever!

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I liked about this book: No forward, No afterward, No discussion questions, No reader's guide. Just the book & short acknowledgments, make what you will of it.

[Biljana Ilioska · Rating 5 out of 5]

Odlicna kniga so mesto na nastan Irak, kniga za medicinskata sestra koja im pomaga na Amerikancite neznaejki nejziniot tatko a vo isto vreme se zaljubuva vo Amerikanec.

[Schnaucl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leila is a young woman living in Mosul, Iraq during the present(ish) day. More than anything she wants to be a doctor.

As her country has deteriorated she's watched her freedoms slip away. Just walking outside is dangerous because there's the possibility of being shot by mujaheddin or soldiers, there's the danger of suicide bombers and IEDs. Almost worse than that, the culture is becoming more conservative. Once she had a bright future as a doctor, now her family thinks her only role is to get married and produce babies. It might be the life her sister wants, but it's not the life that Leila wants.

Her once progressive father in particular has become re-devoted to his faith and simultaneously much more conservative. He wants to know where she is every minute of every day.

Her first meeting with Captain James Cartwright occurs when she's at a friend's house past curfew and so must stay the night. That night the special forces break into the house looking for mujaheddin.

Leila is able to get a job at a pharmacy but lasts only a month because her Muslim co-worker tries to force himself on her. She's then offered a job working as a medical assistant/translator at the US military base. She takes the job, keeping it a secret from her parents, who continue to believe that she's working at the pharmacy.

Over time she learns her father has become part of the mujaheddin and must choose sides between her new American friends and her family.

I liked the characters a lot and I thought the story was a good one. I really wish that we'd been able to see why her father became mujaheddin though. The suggestion is that he used to have a lot of power and now he doesn't and that's turned him more conservative. I can see that as an explanation, it just would have been nice to actually see some of that instead of starting the story with him already a radical conservative.

I'm not sure about the API (read: Blackwater) portion of the story. It didn't really seem to fit. I think the premise is interesting (and I suspect that Gallaway is quite right about some of the violence and the profit motive) but it seemed more fitting for a thriller. It also makes the ending awkward. It sort of leaves things hanging but I think the portray it accurately would have ended on too depressing a note. (The world would wail and gnash teeth, lower level people would have their wrists slapped and nothing would change except, perhaps, the name of the company. I think I saw a headline yesterday that there are more contractors than military in Afghanistan now). Anyway, it seemed a little tacked on and took away from the conflict between choosing her family and choosing her own sense of morality.

I also think seeing more of her life before her father's conversion to radical conservatism would have made the struggle more compelling. It's difficult for an American audience to not root for her to choose the American side to begin with. Her dad isn't exactly one dimensional, but we don't see enough of him as a good person to feel a real conflict of loyalty as readers other than, for some of us, family is important all by itself.

I'm also starting to see more authors rely on Google Earth, which makes me uneasy. I understand not wanting (or being able) to go to Mosul, but still.

Having said all that, I did enjoy the story and I think it was well done.

[Tara Chevrestt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I loved this book. It occurs during the present day Iraqi war. Readers are introduced to Leila, a young woman living in Mosul who has high hopes and dreams for herself. She strives to become educated and pursue a career as a doctor. However, her parents are trying desperately to marry her off to her repulsive cousin. Her father is a terrorist and after getting a job on an American military base as a medical assistant and a translator, Leila is torn between two worlds. Her father encourages her to spy on the Americans and the Americans want her to turn in her father. Either decision she makes betrays someone, either her father who is randomly killing and full of hate or her new American friends and co workers who do not understand her country or religion, not to mention the handsome American Major she is falling in love with. The last couple of chapters are very fast paced and full of action as Leila's father commits a horrifying crime, making her an accomplice to terrorism. Will the choice she makes in the end be the right one? I sense a sequel here also.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a contemporary novel about a Muslim girl in Iraq. She has previously been allowed to live a very modern life. Previous to the war she was going to college, preparing to become a doctor, dressing in traditional American ways, etc. However, since the war began her father has become very conservative and anti-American. She secretly takes a job as a translator for American doctors working on the soldier base. This is her story of trying to fit into both world without betraying those she loves to one another. It was an interesting book of a woman leaving behind her traditions and fighting for what she desires in life. It's unclear what is fiction versus what is based on real events. Also, some might say it a stereotypical portrayal of a Muslim woman as wanting to break free from binding traditions.

[Codi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had likes and dislikes with this book. I did like that it was different from other books set in the Middle East during war times. The main character's father is a terrorist so it put a different spin on things. Other reviews said that it was offensive and made their culture/people seem awful. I didn't see that. Of course, I have common sense and know that a whole population can't be summed up by a handful of characters from a book. I liked the perspective and found it interesting.
I wasn't a fan of the little side story with the war being caused by certain other things. That seemed a little confusing to me and off. The last few chapters seemed to wrap things up a little too quickly and didn't have a lot of depth. Huge things happened and it just seemed to be rushed. I didn't really care for the end....again with the weird side story.
All in all, still a good read.

[Eloise · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm excited to discuss this book in our book group next month. The person who chose the book, Marilyn Mansfield, intended for us to read it last year, but, instead, we all read Kristin Hannah's book by the same title. A week before we were to discuss the book, Marilyn found out about the mix-up and hurried to read Hannah's book, which we discussed. (A solution to the problem that I found delightful. I'm not sure what I would've done. Undoubtedlly whined a lot.)
What is it like to be a young woman in war-torn Iraq, especially one with career aspirations? As always when I read a book like this, I find myself feeling grateful for my own life and wondering what my obligations are as a result of being so blessed with freedom of choice.
I had a little bit of trouble suspending disbelief toward the end but generally enjoyed the book very much.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was very well written. The voice of the main character, Leila, who was a 23 year-old Iraqi woman, was so real to the thoughts and feelings of an independent woman wanting to mark her own path in life, but hampered by cultural roadblocks. The information given in this book about the war in Iraq was very informative and I find myself understanding more references to the war now that I have read this book. I also enjoyed the love story between Leila and her man and appreciated the fact that the author kept this romance very clean and innocent...such a refreshing break from today's literature. My book club group of ladies aging from late twenties to early thirties found this book to be a great read and would definitely recommend it to others.

[Karen Gunther · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of those books that sucked me in, and didn't let me go until I'd finished it, and then felt emotionally drained. It is the story of a young woman in Iraq during the war and the conflicts she faces trying to mesh traditional expectations of her family, her religion and her culture to her own desires to be a modern woman. Mix this with the dangers of the war and you have an absorbing story. There is enough detail to be credible, although as a work of fiction, you aren't sure how much is really true but I believe it to be well researched. My only complaint is that the climactic ending seems rushed. I was aching for more... what happened in that 18 month gap that is jumped over? That would be an interesting sequel.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book ended up in my hands after visiting Pegasus bookstore in west Seattle. They have a basket of books wrapped individually in paper bags sitting at the front of their shop. Apparently these are books that haven't been selling for one reason or another but receive excellent reviews. When I first opened the book up, I was t particularly excited tied about reading it. It took me all of 25 pages, and I wasnt able to put it down. Read it in less than a week and loved every second of it. It was beautifully written and stimulating. The author chose a brave subject and also one I'm unfamiliar with and my enjoyment of the book came as a surprise. I want to read another book on the subject and also another book by the author.

[Deena Scintilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set in post-Saddam Iraq, this book was hard for me to put down. As with most books dealing with the suppression of women and their treatment as second or even third class citizens, I had an emotional response of anger and sadness.

The main character is a university-educated 23 yr old woman (Leila) who wants to be a doctor but gets caught up in the events in war-torn Iraq and is forced to choose between her father who has become a leader of terrorists and the Americans with whom she has worked at a base hospital. To complicate matters, she falls in love with one of the Army captains. Her life is compromised every way she turns in the story, and I almost dreaded the ending.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of an Iraqi woman living in Mosul. She was educated at the university in Cairo, but now lives with an ever-increasingly irrational father. She takes a job as a translator at the hospital on the American Army base in Mosul--without telling her family. I liked that there wasn't one right and one wrong side to the situation, except maybe her father's. But it wasn't "darn those American imperialists" or completely making the Iraqis out to be jihadists. Enjoyable, even if the storyline gets a little hokey.

[Rachel Crump · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I really loved this book. I enjoyed Leila's story, her passion, her bravery. I felt it really offered a personal insight to what life must have been, and is still, like for women in Iraq. Torn between so many aspects of life. I think Gallaway did a wonderful job of expressing the frustrations that all sides felt, and still feel, about the war in Iraq. I loved, loved the love story; very simple, pure, clean, refreshing.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Novel of an Iraqui girl who wants to be a doctor and what happened to her and her family during the Iraqui occupation with the U.S.
Her father, formerly a judge, becomes a terrorist.
She falls in love with an American.
The escalation of the war is blamed on American contractors who are out for their own good. So difficult to be a woman in that culture.
I recommend this book.
Nightingale is the name her father calls her when all is well with the world.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read on how a girl in Iraq chooses accomplishing her goals and dreams over the wishes of her family and finds love in the process. The book does get a little political as it relates to the war in Iraq and the author hints at some Anti-American beliefs. I also felt that the ending was rushed but it was still a good read.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me a minute to get into, after reading the introduction I wasn't that interested in reading the place descriptions as the author has never been to Iraq, (if I was, I would be reading a fantasy or sci-fi novel.) But now I am knee-deep and SO INTO IT. I am fully & completely drawn in and the writing is smooth and engaging.

[Jessie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a read a number of books about the Middle East, but I think this is the first I've read that is set in contemporary Iraq. The plot really kept me reading and I thought the writing was pretty decent. It felt like it had a lot going on (action, romance, social commentary, political issues), but I would read a follow-up if the author writes one.