
Two Thousand and One Syrian Nights
Samir Twair
Pat McDonnell Twair
2018, 978-172-907957-7, $20.90 pb.
Pat McDonnell was a journalist, archeologist, activist and native of California who, not long after arriving in Syria in 1977 for doctoral research, fractured her ankle at an archeological site. The mishap led her to her future husband, Samir Twair, and she went on to live in Syria through 1983 and publish some 1,800 stories—quite possibly as the only self-employed American in the entire country. She passed away in January 2018, and this is a posthumous collection of her writings from those years—from falling in love and getting to know her husband’s family to the epochal history of Syria, modern social life, relationships, women, artists and politics. It is a story of two people from two cultures meeting where East and West have met for centuries, a story that, in her case, has a happy ending.
You may also be interested in...
Celebrate Women's History Month With These Reads on Women Throughout History
To help honor Women’s History Month, AramcoWorld brings you a list of 10 female-focused reads that celebrate women throughout history.Children’s Book Documents Rise of Umm Kulthum, Egypt’s Star of the East, As Declaration of National Identity
Illustrator Rhonda Roumani presents an illustrative biography of legendary Egyptian singer and cultural icon Umm Kulthum.Essays Unpack the Evolving Hajj and Umrah Experience
This volume of essays juxtaposes historical first-hand narratives of Hajj and Umrah journeys with oral interviews of contemporary pilgrims to show the transformative power of storytelling.