The Hakawati [Hardcover]

'In the tradition of Arabian Nights, The Hakawati's tales are wonderful...This is a delightful book, cover to cover.' --Historical Novels Review

'Here is absolute beauty. One of the finest novels I've read in years.'
--Junot Diaz, author of 'The Bried Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao'

'Alameddine's own storytelling ingenuity seems infinite...fashioned a novel on a royal scale, as reflective of past empires as present.'

'Alameddine has a genius for the emotional hinges on which novels turn.'

'Moving smoothly between boisterous modern Beirut and the magical world of traditional folk tales.'

'Far from sad, everyone has a story to tell, and what heart-wrenching, funny, spellbinding and exciting stories they are.'

'An enchanting portrait of Middle-Eastern life.'

'...moves effortlessly between the classic narrative traditions of The Thousand and One Nights and the psychology of modern Western fiction.'

'A wonderfully unpredictable and original read. It can't be recommended enough.'

'Alameddine's is a crafted work that - like the master storyteller - works its magic by stealth.'

'Alameddine's borrowings from the folk traditions of both east and west are abundant but he is more than just a hakawati, or storyteller.'

Bursting with stories and myths, this exuberant, irrepressible family novel has all the magic of A Hundred Years of Solitude - for the Middle East

Irreverent, exhilarating, heartbreaking, and enchanting us from the very first line - 'Listen. Let me take you on a journey beyond imagining. Let me tell you a story' - this extraordinary book is an Arabian Nights for our time. Osama al-Kharrat left Lebanon at sixteen to escape the civil war. He returns after some years, much changed, to find his father bedridden and his family, friends and enemies in attendance, reminiscing, gossiping, making peace, and above all telling stories. 'Hakawati' means 'storyteller', and Osama's grandfather was one of the best. From Uncle Jihad to the family doctor ‘Tin Can’, each member of Osama's circle is joined in a vigil that crosses continents, spans centuries, celebrates love, recounts war, and creates an epic picture of the region: one that is at once mythic, mischievous, and painfully real. 'A glorious, gorgeous masterpiece of pure storytelling' Amy Tan ‘The Hakawati is astonishing. There is a delightful cheekiness in telling so many tales all at the same time. It is pure genius’ Aleksandar Hemon 'Here it comes, the book of the year, on its own magic carpet of endless stories. Both a snapshot of our current crisis, and a story for the ages' Andrew Sean Greer

Rabih Alameddine was born in Jordan to Lebanese parents and has lived in Kuwait, Lebanon, England, and the United States. He is the author of two previous novels and a collection of short stories, and is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship. He lives in San Francisco and Beirut.