Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this book. Where the Wind Calls Home focuses on Ali as he reflects on his life in the Syrian countryside while hanging between life and death.

While Yazbek's novel subtly and at times lyrically deals with themes of nature, community, identity, family and loss amid the backdrop of Syria's war and corruption, the prose and story as a whole comes off as endlessly rambling, needlessly detailed and overly obfuscated to me.

The novel would have been more impactful had it been more concise; with the current version, it took me nearly 4 months to muddle through such a slim book. The foundation for a good read was there, but in my opinion the execution hampered its potential.

Where the Wind Calls Home by Samar Yazbek unfolds through a non-linear narrative that intricately weaves together the threads of memory. The protagonist, Ali, grappling with the precarious balance between life and death, revisits the past to unravel the complexities of the tumultuous present. The narrative serves as both Ali's personal coming-of-age story and a reflection on Syria's tragic descent into war. At its core, the novel delves into the profound human toll exacted by the conflict, portraying the sacrifice of young lives and the heartbreaking fracturing of families torn apart by grief.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

This was a beautiful and subtle book that explores the complex interactions between consciousness, identity, memory, and sense perception and that liminal space between reality and the imagination. This is a short book that rewards sensitive and attentive readers who are comfortable with ambiguity. I look forward to reading more from Samar Yazbek!

This book broke my heart - horrific, intense and gorgeously weaved this story is dark but intensely necessary.

With so few pages this book says so much.

An interesting premise of a soldier in Syria who reflects on his life as he lays wounded. This book is written with a poetic prose that digs deep into human existence and its connections with nature. It is well written, and a book that would allow for indepth discussion for bookclubs and the like. The story follows Ali and drifts in and out of various states of his mind. It is written in the third person and I could not help but feel as it was so closely linked to Ali's mind and his thoughts that it would have benefited from a first person perspective.

What this book is not, is informative of the troubles and history that have revolved around Syria. This was a disapointment to me as I was hoping to learn more about this area. That is not say it is a bad book, but I feel this will be one of those marmite pieces of literature.

A beautiful Syrian story.
But the pace is quite slow. The writing tone doesn't work for me.

Thanks NetGalley and the author for the ARC.

Absolutely stunning book. I certainly appreciate all the praise of Samar Yazbek's work.

The story is a simple one on the face of it. Ali is a young soldier, blown up by friendly fire. He finds himself lying in a crater next to a tree. The book centres around him trying to climb the tree to safety.Ali's attempts to work out how badly he is hurt and how to reach the trees branches are interlaced with thoughts of his life.

The distinction between the two realities is so subtle you barely notice the switch happening. The stories are almost dreamlike in quality and as Ali tries to process his reality it becomes difficult to separate what is real and what isn't.

The writing is quite spare but emotionally charged. You're left in no doubt as to what life is like for the average family in Syria and how appalling the circumstances are for people living there. And this war is just the latest in a long list of wars that Syria has been involved in during the 20th and 21st centuries. Samar Yazek conveys all this in what is a short, sparse novel.

It is beautifully written, very moving and I'd love to read more of her work. I'd highly recommend this book to anyone.

Many thanks to Netgalley and World Editions for the advance review copy.

I couldn't finish this one. It's a very short book, but I just couldn't get wrapped up in it. The overly descriptive stream of consciousness style of writing is just not for me. I made it about a third of the way and all that had happened so far was a funeral and some vague references to a civil war. I still wasn't sure if Ali is actually dead or alive yet, and I just didn't want to be in his head any longer. The writing may be well done, but it just isn't a style of writing that I enjoy.

A very different genre of book for me. It took me a long time to ‘get into’ this storyline. A beautifully written book, somewhat sad as it tells the story of Ali a young person with learning difficulties who just wants to do his own thing, nurture his own garde.n. The story of small villages whose sons are taken to fight a war that nobody understands. Ali is also sent to war. We are told how after being wounded his hallucinations take him to family time before the war, not always a happy time either. We are told a live his hallucinations right up to the story’s end.

Ali, a young soldier from a small village in Syria, lies underneath a tree, gravely injured due to some sort of explosion. As he lies there, he relives his life as he starts with recounting his brother's funeral, his mother's breakdowns during the course of his formative years.

Set during the time that is on the brink of civil war, Ali runs contradictions in his mind with his current state - a sort of fugue between life and death, and the life he lead before the war. Through his eyes, Samar Yazbek gives a poetic narration of Syrian countryside, the simplicity of life and the way war is brought to them.

As expected from this author, the narration is rich, haunting and engaging.

<i>Thanks to World Editions and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.</i>

Well, it seems like an unpopular opinion but this book didn't work for me. Even though I was looking forward to reading it, mainly for two reasons ―1. It's a translation. 2. It tells the story of Syria. I like reading multicultural stories.

It starts well. The first chapter was good, very well written, even though it was a slow monologue. But then it went on and on. The same thing, a slow, repetitive monologue. New chapters offer nothing new, maybe it does later, but I lost my patience. You may like it if you're a patient reader and like slow, descriptive reads.

I really wanted to like it but could not connect with the writing style. Sorry. But thank you for the copy. Not posting my views anywhere else.

The writing is absolutely beautiful in Where the Wind Calls Home. This is an emotional, powerful story, with wonderful prose. I definitely recommend this novel to anyone looking for a memorable story that will stay with you a long time, and I will be keeping an eye on this author to see what else they write.

As Ali, a 19 year old Syrian soldier lies on the ground, he sees a body being lowered into the ground; is it his grave?

This novel weaves through vignettes of Ali's life.

The writing style wasn't my cup of tea, but I know it'll work for many others.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with the review copy.
The writing is exceptionally melodic and very pleasant that you wish the book would never end.
Just reminded me of Khaled Hosseini's writing.
💥💥💥💥💥 5/5

3.5 Stars of out 5.

This is a stunningly written novel which focuses on a soldier Ali in the aftermath of a bomb explosion as he reflects on his life up until this point. It portrays the damage and the destruction of families and communities brought about civil war and political unrest. Yazbek's writing is vivid, and devastating at times. It was not necessarily a book that I loved and had to come back to it on numerous occasions but I think it is an extremely powerful story that many readers will enjoy

An emotionally gripping tale that transcends life and death. Ali, our protagonist, is a young, nineteen year old soldier amidst war in Syria who navigates back and forth between the past and present and the cost of war to his village and family. It is short yet poignant, descriptive and haunting. Who is dead? Is it himself? The poetic journey is well worth it.

Thank you Net Galley and the publisher for this arc.

This is my first contact with the author and I need to thank NetGalley for the access to this book. I like the way the narrative is made in this book. Is no lineal so it made the reading a bit more interesting for me since we following memories from the character. We follow a Syrian character in the start of this book I find some bit a bit repetitive and is base in the memories of the protagonist so it sense to get confusing but it worth stick on it because I think the characters are well constructed I loved how empathetic most of them are describe and we need to remember this book isn’t just about happy memories it show what most of us don’t want to hear or see. One of the things I love most in this book is how lyrical the book can turn and for me is rare to find narratives in crafted so beautiful now days. The book isn’t easy to read we need to remember this books show you the reality, the real costo of war, the millions of life hurt and innocence’s of kids destroyed. The book was translated from the Arabic and I like to think it was a great job since for me it didn’t lost the spirit of the author. The use of trees in this book is such a beautiful metaphor that it touch me when I read the book. This novel is out the 6th of the February 2024 so it worth to preorder if you think you want give the book a chance.

Gather around people, this is my first Syrian Lit and definitely won't be the last.

It started off as Ali, in between of living and dying, found himself, his soul, at least, scattered around a funeral. He could hear and see vividly the soil piled up, the talqin, nd her loved ones sobbing around the grave. He couldn't be the one that's dead, could he? Or is hir brother?

We were then taken to jog Ali's memory; life pre-civil war. His childhood, his school-less days, his birth story, which surrounded by mystics element (he's not crying ffs). How he ended up being indebted to Humayrouna, his brother's passing, and his mother's breakdowns. Ali described his movement as flying (take it as you will), and soon, we're becoming the spectator of civil war, which started as violently surpressed protests.

The storytelling and character description are told seamlessly, with deeply empathatic characters. The emotional gripped, charged and punched you in the gut. I've reached the point of sobbing when the mother screams cathartically while being told to keep demure because she's a woman. Like bro, she lose a child. Yazbek's approach on Syrian conflict is powerful, being told from a kid unfit for school. Her ability of telling everything in laymen terms (think Flower of Algernon pre-smart surgery) is mind-blowing.

This book was far from what I'd normally choose but after sitting glued to the pages since 8 am and having just finished the book I can say that this is probably one of the most touching and poignant books I have ever read. Written with such beauty and compassion I am now going to seek out her other books.

Where the Wind Calls Home by Samar Yazbek is a non-linear narrative which embraces reliving memory. The Syrian protagonist, Ali, caught in the balance between life and death, returns to the past in an attempt to make sense of the immediate present. This return charts Ali's coming-of-age as well as his home country's descent into war. At the centre is a focus on the human cost of this war as young men are sacrificed and families are torn apart by grief.

In the beginning, Yazbek's exposition felt too dense, with repetitive description emphasising Ali's confusion as he appears to wake up in the past and present simultaneously. This lack of clarity is no doubt meant to reflect our protagonist's predicament, but it requires the reader to place trust in Yazbek's craft and at times it felt unnecessarily complicated.

But, Yazbek's storytelling is rich and the clarity we crave is eventually delivered. Ali's memories are an attempt to piece together the events which lead to the moment he and fellow soldiers were hit by a friendly-fire bomb. Yazbek's non-linear choice explores how, while Ali's conscription was swift, life as he and his family knew it had been derailing long before this.

Towards the end, Yazbek's writing is exceptionally lyrical, especially when depicting the bond between Ali and his mother, Nahla. Thus, those who enjoyed Ocean Vuong's 'Time is a Mother' will no doubt enjoy Yazbek's style here.

Those in search of a story from a non-Western perspective will also enjoy this, with Yazbek's focus on the human cost and the innocence and children lost in war being reminiscent of Khaled Hosseini's work.

And, of course, the richness of this story in English is thanks to Leri Price, whose translation captures Yazbek's intentions and homage to the Syrian people.