Description

"We let ourselves be won over by this novel that describes with such faithfulness and emotion the tearing apart of a country and a woman forever caught between two shores." 'ÄîLe Monde "Full of poetry and freshness'Ä¶" 'ÄîGuide de la rentree litteraire, Lire/Virgin

WINNER OF FRANCE'S THE LAGARDERE PRIZE
SHORTLISTED FOR THE INTERNATIONAL PRIZE OF ARABIC FICTION
RAISES IMPORTANT QUESTIONS ABOUT IDENTITY, BELONGING, AND PATRIOTISM

In her award-winning novel, Inaam Kachachi portrays the dual tragedy of her native land: America's failure and the humiliation of Iraq.

The American Granddaughter depicts the American occupation of Iraq through the eyes of a young Iraqi-American woman, who returns to her country as an interpreter for the US Army. Through the narrator's conflicting emotions, we see the tragedy of a country which, having battled to emerge from dictatorship, then finds itself under foreign occupation.

At the beginning of America's occupation of Iraq, Zeina returns to her war-torn homeland as an interpreter for the US Army. Her formidable grandmother--the only family member that Zeina believes she has in Iraq--gravely disapproves of her granddaughter's actions. Then Zeina meets Haider and Muhaymin, two "brothers" she knows nothing of, and falls deeply in love with Muhaymin, a militant in the Al Mehdi Army. These experiences force her to question all her values.