A look at our picks for books this week.
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Being Palestinian by Yasir Suleiman
Suleiman’s volume contains more than 100 voices from the Palestinian diaspora in the US and UK, reflecting upon what exile means for Palestinians. Young and old, Christian and Muslim, men and women, and from all walks of life; all have interesting thoughts on self and separation. (Edinburgh University Press, January 31)
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The Expatriates by Janice Y K Lee
Set in the expatriate community in present-day Hong Kong, Lee’s novel follows the lives of three women struck by personal trials and tragedy. Isolated by their privilege, without jobs or friends in the local community, the women find themselves struggling to maintain their sense of worth and identity. (Little, Brown, January 12)
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In the Café of Lost Youth by Patrick Modiano
Amidst the slew of new translations of work by the 2014 Nobel Laureate in Literature, is this tale set in 1960s Paris. Four narrators, including the heroine, construct a portrait of a bored housewife known as Louki. As ever, Modiano’s depiction of Paris is one of the strongest strands. (Maclehose Press, January 7)
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The Dust of Promises by Ahlem Mosteghanemi
Paris is also the setting for the final part in the much-loved Algerian poet and novelist’s best-selling trilogy. Mosteghanemi’s famous love story ends with the three main characters reunited by chance, exploring old wounds and bitter memories of lives past in their war-torn homeland Algeria. (Bloomsbury, January 14)
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Beethoven for a Later Age by Edward Dusinberre
Violinist Edward Dusinberre, who has played with the Takács Quartet since 1993, recounts its creative life through Beethoven’s 16 string quartets. The composer’s radical and extraordinary music, composed at a time of upheaval, both invigorates and tests. (Faber & Faber, January 21)
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Bad News by Anjan Sundaram
A haunting story about the rise of a dictatorship and the risks taken by journalists in attempting to record the truth, written by a foreign correspondent who is himself determined to catalogue the injustices of modern-day Rwanda. Required reading in evocative prose. (v Bloomsbury, January 14)
