Jasmine and Fire by Salma Abdelnour (Giveaway)

This book is an account of American/Lebanese writer Salma Abdelnour‘s stay in Beirut  after a life spent in the US. This is a book that hundreds of thousands of Lebanese expats throughout the world could easily relate to. Salma Abdelnour is a gifted writer; she manages to write a 300 page book in which very little happens, yet you find yourself engrossed in the book. I read it in two days. The main theme of the book is one of identity and how one who is straddled between two cultures resolve this issue. Salma’s writing style is so fluid that her search is enjoyable (while the outcome remains nebulous). A much more casual read than Amin Maalouf Identités Meurtrières, the French-Lebanese writer who was recently crowned académicien (belonging to the French Académie, a lifelong honor) and tackles the same issue in his book.  I will enter a draw at the end of July (Salma has a couple of book signings in Beirut this coming month) and you may be the lucky winner. Just leave a comment here if you’d like to be part of the draw.