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Product Description
Review
"* 'A sad, dignified book. Shehadeh writes with great clarity and simplicity, but no bitterness, more in sorrow than in anger, about the unhappy history of his family and country.' - Independent * 'A remarkable human document that explains better than a hundred political treatises why there is still no peace in the Middle East'- Amos Elon * 'A book with a huge sensory impact' - Financial Times"
Book Description
An extraordinary and moving memoir by the award-winning author of Palestinian Walks - updated with a new foreword.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is an excellent, well written, unique and intelligent book about father-son relationships in the Arab world which also gives insight into life under occupation; it is however, much more than an account of the occupation. Shehadeh has led a more privileged life than most Palestinians though he remains affected by the occupation in many ways; his experiences and empathy has led him to form Al-Haq (a succesful Palestinian human rights organisation.)
This account is moving and gives insight into the expectations of family in the Middle East and, in particular of Shehadeh's desire for approval from his father who remains critical of him into adulthood despite his success.
One of his other books, Palestinian Walks is beautiful though this is a more readable (and difficult to put down) account of his complex relationship with his father and his search for justice after his father's assassination.
A must read!
This account is moving and gives insight into the expectations of family in the Middle East and, in particular of Shehadeh's desire for approval from his father who remains critical of him into adulthood despite his success.
One of his other books, Palestinian Walks is beautiful though this is a more readable (and difficult to put down) account of his complex relationship with his father and his search for justice after his father's assassination.
A must read!
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Am finding this a fascinating and informative read.
Gives real feel for frustration of Palestinians under Israeli rule,
whilst remaining positive about Israelis themselves as people.
Gives real feel for frustration of Palestinians under Israeli rule,
whilst remaining positive about Israelis themselves as people.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
15 reviews
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
It is a privilege and an honour to read this
5 Sep 2005
Format:Paperback
I was at first taken aback by the way Palestinian lawyer and writer Raja Shehadeh chose to begin this book, his memoir. Knowing that he is a very important figure in Palestine, I expected (even half-dreaded) a right-on plunge in the middle of Israeli/Middle-Eastern politics. I was wrong.
Although he begins by mentioning the 1948 war as a fact that explains his having been born in Ramallah and not Jaffa, where his family was very important, that's just about it.....in the beginning. We are treated then to a delicately rendered description of the writer's childhood: to a vision of the almost sad figure of a fragile child whose life seems always measured against the looming and powerful figure of his father (a very important Palestinian lawyer), and the impossible to reach lights and colours of neverland-Jaffa, the way of life that the family had lost forever.
It is the relationship with the father, however, what soon becomes the focus of this memoir. And here we must admire one of the most important aspects of the book: an honest-to-God account of how this boy, then young man, then adult, managed his growing, changing relationship with a strong and powerful father. I was swept from my feet at having such a first hand description of a never-easy son/father relationship. I must confess I was astounded that this incredibly sincere testimony was rendered by an Arab man since, as the same author acknowledges, his is a culture where the son/father bond tends to be quite distant, formal and formidable.
We, readers, see how having such an important father proves to be a load, but also a challenge for the author. And as he begins to be more sure about what his place in the world is, and what his mission is, the world of politics (which had never quite disappeared from the background) returns with force, but in such a way that provokes a fatal crisis in this already difficult son/father relationship. And just as the situation appears to be unbearable, just as the breach seems impossible to mend......Raja's father is murdered.
Here the book takes an abrupt turn. Raja decides to help as much as he can to find the murderer, whom he believes to be someone involved in a land dispute his father was working on. He is good. The pace and tempo of the narrative change so that we begin to feel the urge to know who this murderer is, for we are much pretty sure of why the murder took place......and I won't spoil the ending for you. I'll just say that it is important. Very important. For Raja and for all of us.
Just as this seemingly humble book is terribly important: as the personal memoir of a man who has always been politically moderate, a fighter for human rights, one of the few Palestinians who has ever dared to criticise the politics of the Palestinian leaders and of the Arab leaders; one of the few who was always convinced that Arabs had to negotiate with Israeli, that Israel was there to stay; as a honest, moving homage to a father who was a powerful force in the author's life (and who taught him to see politics and the Middle-East the way he saw it);..... as a way to know more about that rarely-found-in-the-news-and-media specimen: the Arab, Palestinian moderate, and the way he fares.
Although he begins by mentioning the 1948 war as a fact that explains his having been born in Ramallah and not Jaffa, where his family was very important, that's just about it.....in the beginning. We are treated then to a delicately rendered description of the writer's childhood: to a vision of the almost sad figure of a fragile child whose life seems always measured against the looming and powerful figure of his father (a very important Palestinian lawyer), and the impossible to reach lights and colours of neverland-Jaffa, the way of life that the family had lost forever.
It is the relationship with the father, however, what soon becomes the focus of this memoir. And here we must admire one of the most important aspects of the book: an honest-to-God account of how this boy, then young man, then adult, managed his growing, changing relationship with a strong and powerful father. I was swept from my feet at having such a first hand description of a never-easy son/father relationship. I must confess I was astounded that this incredibly sincere testimony was rendered by an Arab man since, as the same author acknowledges, his is a culture where the son/father bond tends to be quite distant, formal and formidable.
We, readers, see how having such an important father proves to be a load, but also a challenge for the author. And as he begins to be more sure about what his place in the world is, and what his mission is, the world of politics (which had never quite disappeared from the background) returns with force, but in such a way that provokes a fatal crisis in this already difficult son/father relationship. And just as the situation appears to be unbearable, just as the breach seems impossible to mend......Raja's father is murdered.
Here the book takes an abrupt turn. Raja decides to help as much as he can to find the murderer, whom he believes to be someone involved in a land dispute his father was working on. He is good. The pace and tempo of the narrative change so that we begin to feel the urge to know who this murderer is, for we are much pretty sure of why the murder took place......and I won't spoil the ending for you. I'll just say that it is important. Very important. For Raja and for all of us.
Just as this seemingly humble book is terribly important: as the personal memoir of a man who has always been politically moderate, a fighter for human rights, one of the few Palestinians who has ever dared to criticise the politics of the Palestinian leaders and of the Arab leaders; one of the few who was always convinced that Arabs had to negotiate with Israeli, that Israel was there to stay; as a honest, moving homage to a father who was a powerful force in the author's life (and who taught him to see politics and the Middle-East the way he saw it);..... as a way to know more about that rarely-found-in-the-news-and-media specimen: the Arab, Palestinian moderate, and the way he fares.
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Eye-opening
27 July 2006
Format:Paperback
As an American, I have grown up to believe that Israel is a close friend to us. I would imagine that an ally of the United States would be a country that follows human rights guidelines. However, I was mistaken. "Strangers in the House" is a brilliantly written piece which provides personal experiences in an occupied Palestine. With all of the conflict in the Middle East currently, it is a must-read, to understand the viewpoint from all angles. Raja Shehadeh thinks way past his time, as his father had. He has written this book for the world to know what daily life is like under occupation and that it is a constant struggle. Mr. Shehadeh is admirable in his open-mindedness. If you would like to see the viewpoint from the other side, this book is perfect. It will help you open your mind and see the truth.
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Powerful message
8 Feb 2002
Format:Hardcover
This book was assigned reading for a class of mine, but I am extremely glad that I read it. At first, it seems to be merely Raja's autobiography, but it is much more than that. Strangers in the House is described in the foreward as being "not a political book," but at the same time "in a hundred different ways it is political." A strong message about what should be done to solve and end the Palestine-Israeli conflict is presented through Raja's story of his life.
Since his views on what should happen contrast so sharply with those of his father, Aziz, it was difficult for him to grow up and not argue incessantly with his parents. Somehow me managed to look at his situation logically, and has maintained his individuality in the world. By fighting for human rights and trying to enfore the real estate laws which are broken by the Israelis, Raja is trying his hardest to change the world and better everyone's lives in the Middle East.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone with any desire to learn about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, as well as to anyone who tries to keep one eye open to the state of our world today.
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