A MASTERPIECE FROM THE BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF THE DARK SIDE OF LOVE — A murder in Damascus, a love with the power to save a young man's life... In his latest novel, Rafik Schami ventures to the land of his childhood, where he is now unable to safely return: Syria. As a young girl, Sophia falls deeply in love with Karim, but weds a rich goldsmith instead. A few years later, Karim is accused of an assassination he did not commit and Sophia saves his life. He promises that she will forever have his loyalty, no matter the risk to himself. Long after the incident is buried in memory, Sophia's only son, Salman, returns to Damascus after forty years of exile in Italy; when his photo appears in the newspaper, he is forced into hiding and fears for his life. Remembering Karim's promise, Sophia decides to call on him for help in spite of the many years that have passed, and the lost opportunity of their once-consuming passion. Set during the tumultuous years leading up to the Arab...

Spanning a century of Syrian history, the stories of three generations tell of the courage of lovers who risk death sooner than deny their passions in a country in which religion and politics continue to torment an entire people. It is a story of forbidden love set against the background of Arabic culture and endless feuds between clans.

In the classical Arab tradition of tale-telling, here is a magical book that celebrates the power of storytelling, delightfully transformed for modern sensibilities by an award-winning author.The time is present-day Damascus, and Salim the coachman, the city's most famous storyteller, is mysteriously struck dumb. To break the spell, seven friends gather for seven nights to present Salim with seven wondrous "gifts"-seven stories of their own design.Upon this enchanting frame of tales told in the fragrant Arabian night, the words of the past grow fainter, as ancient customs are yielding to modern turmoil. While the hairdresser, the teacher, the wife of the locksmith sip their tea and pass the water pipe, they swap stories about the magical and the mundane: about djinnis and princesses, about contemporary politics and the difficulties of bargaining in a New York department store. And as one tale leads to another... and another... all of Damascus appears before your eyes,...

Even as a young man, Hamid Farsi is acclaimed as a master of the art of calligraphy. But as time goes by, he sees that weakness in the Arabic language and its script limit its uses in the modern world. In a secret society, he works out schemes for radical reform, never guessing what risks he is running.

Experience a wonderfully complex world of characters and cultures as you explore modern Damascus with a spirited teenage boy.Amid the turmoil of modern Da­mascus, one teenage boy finds his political voice in a message of re­bellion that echoes throughout Syria and as far away as Western Europe. Inspired by his dearest friend, old Uncle Salim, he begins a journal to record his thoughts and impressions of family, friends, life at school, and his growing feelings for his girlfriend, Nadia. Soon the hidden diary be­comes more than just a way to re­member his daily adventures; on its pages he explores his frustration with the government injustices he witnesses. His courage and ingenuity finally find an outlet when he and his friends begin a subversive under­ground newspaper.Warmed by a fine sense of humor, this novel is at once a moving love story and a passionate testimony to the difficult and committed actions being taken by young people around...