An Unlasting Home
About the Book
Sara, a philosophy professor at Kuwait University, has long had an uneasy relationship with her homeland. But after her mother’s death, inertia keeps her there – until she is accused of blasphemy and faces the threat of execution. As she awaits trial, Sara is forced to reckon with her place in the world and the women who shaped her.
Her grandmothers’ lives span privilege and poverty: Yasmine, who married the son of a Pasha and soon regretted it, and Lulwa, swept from hardship into the wealth of an Indian merchant’s household. Then there are her two mothers: Noura, restless for America, and Maria, the devoted ayah who leaves her own children behind in Pune to raise Sara and her brother.
A sweeping saga, An Unlasting Home captures the tragedies and triumphs of three generations of Arab women in one unforgettable tale.
About the Author
Mai Al-Nakib was born in Kuwait and spent the first six years of her life in London, Edinburgh, and St. Louis, Missouri. She holds a PhD in English from Brown University and is an associate professor of English and comparative literature at Kuwait University. Her short story collection, The Hidden Light of Objects, won the Edinburgh International Book Festival’s First Book Award in 2014. Her fiction and essays have appeared in various publications, including Ninth Letter, The First Line, After the Pause, World Literature Today, and the BBC World Service. She lives in Kuwait and is working on her second novel.
Reviews
‘A multigenerational saga about five formidable women … Evocatively crosses the decades and continents to chart Kuwait’s transition through the twentieth century.’ Mariella Frostrup, Times Radio
‘A smooth, fast-flowing narrative devoted to telling, not showing … a testament to the eternal vibrancy and pluck of women in the Arab world.’ Financial Times
‘Passionate and skilful. Every detail lands perfectly and leaves the reader altered.’ A.L. Kennedy
‘Al Nakib writes imaginative tales with grace, lucidity and intelligence. Poignant and profound.’ Selma Dabbagh
'So fresh and unsettling that it will enchant you from the first page and linger for days after reading.' Los Angeles Review of Books
'A mesmerising saga of women’s resilience in the face of political turmoil.' Buzz Magazine
'An author already confident in her craft and her ability to give voice to the emotions and yearnings of her characters.' New Internationalist
'A spellbinding family history unfolds as a Kuwaiti woman goes on trial for blasphemy in a world gone mad. Deftly written, structurally brilliant, Mai Al-Nakib's An Unlasting Home is a lasting novel that splits open time, leaps across continents and creates the sort of characters we carry forward into our hearts and lives. I absolutely loved this book.' A. Manette Ansay
'An ambitious family epic with a historical sweep, an elegy to grandmothers and mothers who were forced from their original homes by personal or political circumstances in the Middle East to build nests elsewhere.' World Literature Today
'An Unlasting Home is an unforgettable story of people making choices for love, family, freedom and identity against the tidal forces of history in the Arab region. Shimmering with poetic prose, and as pressingly real as the white heat of August in Baghdad, this poignant debut will keep you in its thrall.' Juhea Kim
'Deeply enchanting, at times suspenseful, and always engaging, An Unlasting Home is filled with tales of women's lives and their intersection with the often volatile and unpredictable currents of nations, war and political history. Mai Al-Nakib's storyteller's voice is fresh and original. Her book grabbed me from the outset and kept me entranced to the last page.' Diana Abu-Jaber
'Mai Al-Nakib lyrically explores themes of homeland, tradition and agency as she relates the stories of generations of Arab women across Kuwait, the US, Iraq, India and Lebanon.' Ms. Magazine
'Grapples profoundly with the limits of individual choice and the hold exerted by a person's homeland ... accomplished and searing.' Publishers Weekly
'A sweeping novel that will stick with readers for a long time.' Debutiful
'For lovers of sweeping, multigenerational epics like Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing or Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko, this story following three generations of Arab women will strike right at the heart.' Bitch Media
'An ambitious family epic with a historical sweep, an elegy to grandmothers and mothers who were forced from their original homes by personal or political circumstances in the Middle East to build nests elsewhere.' World Literature Today
'Refreshing and eye-opening.' Electric Literature
