The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Middle East

Silken Gazelles by Jokha Alharthi

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Silken Gazelles by Jokha Alharthi
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This shattered my poor heart into a million pieces. The third Alharthi novel I’ve read and now, my favorite. Easily the most insightful novel on female friendship of the decade. Perfect for Ferrante and Rooney fans, for anyone who’s lost a friend and searched for her in every shadow of their life. A haunting and dazzling story.

Silken Gazelles by Jokha Alharthi, (List Price: $27, Catapult, 9781646222070, August 2024)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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The Coin by Yasmin Zaher

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The Coin by Yasmin Zaher
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Yasmin Zaher’s stellar debut never lets the reader get quite comfortable in its prose, and it is in that discomfort The Coin finds its brilliance. New York feels, at times, surreal through the eyes of the narrator, who slips further and further into what I can only describe as a justifiable madness. As the narrator stumbles through a life forced upon her in America, she becomes increasingly more untethered to her life. Her homeland, Palestine, is out of reach, and in flashbacks to her childhood, we can glimpse the parts of herself she left there. Zaher ruminates on statelessness, nature, opulence, and beauty in the narrator’s slow spiral. The Coin is an incredible debut!

The Coin by Yasmin Zaher, (List Price: $27, Catapult, 9781646222100, July 2024)

Reviewed by Kelsey Jagneaux, Tombolo Books in St. Petersburg, Florida

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Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

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by Adib Khorram
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This is one of the best YA novels I have read recently. Darius is an utterly relatable character who just feels like he never fits in: he’s too Persian for America, too American for Iran. When he travels to Iran for the first time, Darius could not feel more out of place, yet he meets a boy who finally makes him feel okay. This book is a powerful story of friendship and does a beautiful job of normalizing depression and discussing the experience of growing up with multiple cultural identities.

Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram, (List Price: $8.99, Dial Books, 9780593857052, April 2024)

Reviewed by Tenley Soergel, Carmichael’s Bookstore in Louisville, Kentucky

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Muhammad Najem, War Reporter by Muhammad Najem

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Muhammad Najem, War Reporter by Muhammad Najem
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A Syrian kid living through the Syrian civil war decides to interview other kids his age using his phone to document what’s going on. He shares it on social media like YT Tw and FB. He felt like he was being targeted by bombs for his news videos. Tense, informative, serious, sad, but also has happy moments. Read it all in one sitting. Hard to put down.

Muhammad Najem, War Reporter by Muhammad Najem, (List Price: $12.99, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780759556904, September 2022)

Reviewed by Eliza, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

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Bitter Orange Tree by Jokha Alharthi

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Bitter Orange Tree by Jokha Alharthi
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When Man Booker Prize winner Jokha Alharthi writes, a river of emotions pours from her in the most beautiful way possible. Her latest translated novel features a young Omani student in London attempting to come to terms with the grief and regrets of losing her devoted grandmother by not attending to her when she needed her most. The tale drifts back and forth through time, giving the reader a view into the two strikingly different lives of these women; where both bear the weight of unfulfilled desires. This was an exquisite and haunting read.

Bitter Orange Tree by Jokha Alharthi, (List Price: $26, Catapult, 9781646220038, May 2022)

Reviewed by Damita Nocton, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

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Song for the Missing by Pierre Jarawan

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Song for the Missing by Pierre Jarawan
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I’m still on a globetrotty search for coming-of-age stories set in the 1990s (specifically 92-96) to hold up my bland high school soft-serve experience-machine. This one here is a perfectly paced and passionate ode to Lebanon, family drama and young friendship, served up like a mystery.

Song for the Missing by Pierre Jarawan, (List Price: $19.99, World Editions, 9781642861075,  March 2022)

Reviewed by Ian McCord, Avid Bookshop in Athens, Georgia

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Nour’s Secret Library by Wafa’ Tarnowska

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Nour's Secret Library by Wafa' Tarnowska
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Nour and her cousin Amir live in Damascus, playing and reading and planning a secret club when the war in Syria comes to their city. Soon they are forced to spend their nights in a basement, and during the day Amir and his friends collect the books left on the streets of Damascus. With the books piling up, Noor and Amir decide to start a secret library- a place for their friends to find hope,adventure, and comfort. The illustrations are lovely and I’m always a sucker for a board book about books!

Nour’s Secret Library by Wafa’ Tarnowska, (List Price: $17.99, Barefoot Books, 9781646862917,  March 2022)

Reviewed by Kate Towery, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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Ground Zero by Alan Gratz

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Ground Zero
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Alan Gratz, historical fiction go-to for middle school, has moved from WWII to more contemporary times with his newest novel Ground Zero. Told from the viewpoint of two teens on opposite sides of the globe, Gratz reframes the 9/11 story for the eyes and ears of young readers. This one is sure to be an instant bestseller.

Ground Zero by Alan Gratz (List Price: $17.99, Scholastic Press, 9781338245752, 2/2/2021)

Reviewed by Angie Tally, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

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