Hello friends! Since the last book club was canceled and we didn't have the chance to talk about Morning in Jenin, we decided to discuss it this month instead. If you didn't manage to read it before, this is your second chance! Hope to see you all there.
For the fourth meeting of Queers For Palestine’s book club, on Thurs 12 September, we will be discussing ‘Mornings in Jenin,’ a book written by Susan Abulhawa.
Otherwise, please email us at
queersforpalestine@proton.me and we’ll find a way to get you the book!
- Have you been wanting to do more reading about Palestine but you feel overwhelmed
and don’t know where to start? Join a book club with fellow queers! - We meet on the second Thursday of every month at 6.30 pm - 8: 30 pm at the intersectional queer
bookshop The Common Press in Bethnal Green. No prior knowledge is necessary and all
are welcome to join. We will be reading one book each month, and we will be discussing it in
person in the meetings.
- There are limited free tickets. The ‘Pay what you can’ tickets start from £4 and support
Common Press’s staffing. No one will be turned away due to lack of funds, please get in
touch with @thecommonpress
About the book:
‘In the refugee camp of Jenin, Amal is born into a world of loss—of home, country, and heritage. Her Palestinian family was driven from their ancestral village by the newly formed state of Israel in 1948. As the villagers fled that day, Amal's older brother, just a baby, was stolen away by an Israeli soldier. In Jenin, the adults subsist on memories, waiting to return to the homes they love. Amal's mother has walled away her heart with grief, and her father labors all day. But in the fleeting peacefulness of dawn, he reads to his young daughter daily, and she can feel his love for her, as big as the ocean and all its fishes." On those quiet mornings, they dream together of a brighter future.
This is Amal's story, the story of one family struggle and survival through over sixty years of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, carrying us from Jenin to Jerusalem, to Lebanon and the anonymity of America. It is a story shaped by scars and fear, but also by the transformative intimacy of marriage and the fierce protectiveness of motherhood. It is a story of faith, forgiveness, and life-sustaining love.’
Poster design: @ahealthylevelofdissent
- Please arrive at 6.30 PM. The Common Press is accessible but currently the toilets aren't available due to construction work.
- There are limited free tickets. The ‘Pay what you can’ tickets start from £4 and support Common Press’s staffing. No one will be turned away due to lack of funds, please get in touch with @thecommonpress
Upcoming dates
TBC
Poster design: @ahealthylevelofdissent
