A review by grace_koalateareads
Minor Detail by Adania Shibli

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This quick yet powerful story takes the reader on a journey through occupied Palestine, through time and through details thought to be minor. 

Partly based on a true story, part one of the book follows an Israeli soldier and unit, a year after the war of 1948, in a bid to find Palestinians who have fled into the Negev desert. They do find a small encampment and murder all but a Palestinian girl, who they abuse, r*pe and inevitably kill. 

An incident that is eventually reported in the present day, which a woman in Ramallah becomes invested in researching this ‘minor detail’ of history, and uncovers more details than she realises. 

Minor Detail by Adania Shibli (translated by Elizabeth Jaquette) is one to add to your TBR pile. I was fascinated to learn more about the occupation of Palestine, the everyday struggles of the people who live there, especially in the West Bank, and how the invasion of the Israeli’s totally rewrote the land and literally changed the maps. This may have been set in a time before the Genocide happening in Gaza currently, yet the parallels were still there in neon signs. 

‘Minor Detail’ actually shows the major details in an occupation that has lasted over 75 years. From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. 🇵🇸🕊️