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A review by sshabein
Light in Gaza: Writings Born of Fire by Jennifer Bing, Mike Merryman-Lotze, Jehad Abusalim
challenging
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5
Since the publication of this book in 2022, contributor Refaat Alareer was killed by an Israeli airstrike in December 2023. He wrote the poem you may have seen, "If I Must Die."
Contributor Mosab Aubu Toha was arrested in November 2023 while trying to cross into Egypt with his family. He was released three days later after international pressure.
Contributor Israa Jamal was still trying to leave Gaza with her family as of May 10, 2024, when yet another Israeli strike in Rafa required them to evacuate to a different area. I am unsure if they made it.
Other writers from this collection are still alive and writing about Gaza, but I couldn't find current information for all of them. I hope they are safe.
If you would like to know more about Gaza, to read Palestinian voices discussing the struggles and hopes they have for their homeland, this book is worth the read. (As of right now, Haymarket Books has the ebook version for free on their site.) It's a mix of academic writing, personal essay, poetry, and photographs that cover a wide range of subjects while still making it clear that the occupation needs to end. I admit to glazing over a bit in the AI chapter, and sometimes the academic portions were not exactly clicking with me, but that's a Me problem. Overall, very glad to have read this, and I learned a lot.
Ceasefire now. Free Palestine.
Contributor Mosab Aubu Toha was arrested in November 2023 while trying to cross into Egypt with his family. He was released three days later after international pressure.
Contributor Israa Jamal was still trying to leave Gaza with her family as of May 10, 2024, when yet another Israeli strike in Rafa required them to evacuate to a different area. I am unsure if they made it.
Other writers from this collection are still alive and writing about Gaza, but I couldn't find current information for all of them. I hope they are safe.
If you would like to know more about Gaza, to read Palestinian voices discussing the struggles and hopes they have for their homeland, this book is worth the read. (As of right now, Haymarket Books has the ebook version for free on their site.) It's a mix of academic writing, personal essay, poetry, and photographs that cover a wide range of subjects while still making it clear that the occupation needs to end. I admit to glazing over a bit in the AI chapter, and sometimes the academic portions were not exactly clicking with me, but that's a Me problem. Overall, very glad to have read this, and I learned a lot.
Ceasefire now. Free Palestine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Colonisation, and War