With little money, some magic, Saeed and Nadia flee their country and arrive in a foreign land, a place where they will be safe, away from the horrors they left behind in hopes of a better life. Will life get better for them?

Outline

The book revolves around two characters Saeed and Nadia. It is set against the backdrop of their hardships as they attempt to escape from their war-torn country taken over by militants and how their life changes after their escape. It traces the journey and highlights their struggles as refugees trying to build a new life in a foreign land and explores the evolution of Saeed and Nadia’s relationship and how that relationship is shaped and altered in crisis. All of this, with an element of magic in it.

Why do I recommend the book?

This book can transport you to its world. It is well written. I couldn’t put the book down till I made it to the end. It is over 220 pages, and it took me a day to finish reading it cover to cover. 

The plotline is very intriguing. The way it explores emotions in changing scenarios across the plot is remarkable. 

The theme of refugees fleeing their country, leaving behind their homes to evade crisis only to become subject to it in a different form, was captured well. I couldn’t help but sympathize with the main characters as I read about their attempts to overcome their adversity and rebuild their life after all the traumatizing, unpleasant experiences. I loved the use of magic as an element to aid their escape, the evolution of the characters, how they changed and grew as they navigated situations they found themselves in, and how these changes in them as individuals shaped the relationship they shared with the other.

It has an insightful tone to the emotional, mental and physical trauma a refugee goes through. However, it does so in a way that makes the characters seem strong and resilient. Their longing for the home that they left behind, the people they left behind, the grief on the realization that they may not ever be able to go back is just too real. 

This book will certainly make you think of actual people who come from actual war-torn countries, who find themselves unwelcomed, discriminated against, and ignored by the authorities of countries they seek refuge in, how despite all these factors, they build a life for themselves from scratch. 

If you want to read a book having a unique plot with a captivating theme, this book certainly checks those boxes for me.

© Samridhi Dutta

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