Thomson, Mike "Syria's Secret Library"

Thomson, Mike "Syria's Secret Library: The true story of how a besieged Syrian town found hope" - 2018

What an inspiring story, a monument of hope and love, a document of man's strength.

In the midst of one of the worst civil wars probably in history, some young men don't just think about themselves, how to survive, how to get food. No, they build a library in order to feed their souls and learn for the future "when all this is over". They are an inspiration to us all. The city was bombed, people were killed, nobody knew what happened to their loved ones. But the young guys collected books from the destroyed houses and made them available to everyone who wanted to get an education, who wanted to read.

I hope that all the people mentioned are still alive and haven't been killed wherever they are now. I would love to see a page by Mike Thomson where he gives us an update from time to time. I know he has tried to stay in touch with the young people and I think, most of us who have read the book, are just as interested in them as he is.

If this book shows us something, we really need books, in times of danger as well as in normal times. I hope future generation will learn from this and enjoy reading as much as I did and do, as I passed on to my children when they were little, as a lot of my friends and family do.

A lot of books were mentioned, these are the ones whose titles I gathered. It gives us an idea that they read about everything.

Adonis = Ali Ahmad Said Esber "A Time Between Ashes and Roses
Abu Zahra, Muhammad "History of Religions"
Alhaj, Faisal bin Mohamad "The Tears of Men"
Al-Jisr, Nadim "A Marxist Interpretation of Islam"
Al-Jisr, Nadim "An Introduction to Islam"
Al-Jisr, Nadim "The Story of Faith"
Al-Masri, Maram "El va nue la Liberté"
Al-Nasr, Ahlam "The Blaze of Truth"
Al-Siba'i "This is What Life Taught Me"
Christie, Agatha "The Body in the Library"
Coelho, Paulo "The Alchemist"
Draz, Dr. Abdallah "Religion"
Giovanni, Janine di "The Morning They Came for Us: Dispatches from Syria"
Mansour, Ahmed "Under Fire in Afghanistan"
Qotob Abou, Muhammad " How to Reach Out to People"
Shakespeare, William "Hamlet"

Books where the author wasn't mentioned and I couldn't find them on the internet, probably not available as a translation.
"Historical Men"
"Mountains of Hope" written by a man from Daraya

Quotes:

"I think books are like rain. Wherever rain falls things grow. So hopefully where our books land, the person who reads them will gain knowledge, and his or her mind will grow." Anas Habib

"As I remember saying to you back in Daraya, just like the body needs food the soul needs books." Anas Habib

"We had a place of sanctuary, an oasis of calm and harmony in what seemed like a world gone mad. … It was another world, a world we shared together. And while outside was destruction and pain, inside was creation and hope. Despite all that was happening, I felt inspired inside those walls." Anas Habib

"The library gave birth to a movement of knowledge and learning, and enabled us to explore new things. It was also our sanctuary, and our minaret. It guided us through all the horrors, lit the path we should take and inspired us to carry on. It taught us that a fighter without knowledge is not a hero, but a gangster. The library's many books were fuel for our souls. They gave us back our lives. While bombs rained down from the skies, we discussed new ideas, learned from the past and planned for the future. The library united us all. It was an essential part of Daraya, and what it stood for. Looking back, the secret library was not only our saviour, it was our biggest weapon against the regime." Abdul Basit

"The secret library was filled with the wonderful aroma of old books and paper. It smelt of history, literature, philosophy, and culture. It was a deep, rich, comforting smell. It was like when you walk in the door of your home and are guided to the kitchen by the smell of fine food. That special dish, and all its delicious ingredients, are waiting there for you. To me, the library was like that. It gave us a precious space where we could breathe hope instead of despair. It liberated us from suffered and savagery. Inside its walls the love of science, literature and ideas filled the air. This symphony of books soothed our hearts. As we entered, its aura revived us, like fresh air to a suffocating man. It was the oxygen for our souls. It was a place where angels met. Each time I stepped inside, I flew with them." Abdul Basit

From the back cover:

"Daraya lies on the fringe of Damascus, just south west of the Syrian Capital. Yet it lives in another world. Besieged by Syrian government forces since 2011, its people were deprived of food, bombarded by bombs and missiles, and shot at by snipers. Its buildings lay in ruins; office buildings, shops and family homes shattered by the constant shelling from government forces. But deep beneath this scene of frightening devastation lay a secret library. 

No signs marked its presence. While the streets above echoed with rifle fire and shelling, the secret world below was a haven of peace and tranquillity. Books, long rows of them, lined almost every wall. Bloated volumes with grand leather covers. Tattered old tomes with barely readable spines. Pocket sized guides to Syrian poetry. Religious works with gaudy gold-lettering and no-nonsense reference books, all arranged in well-ordered lines. But this precious horde of books was not bought from publishers, book warehouses, or loaned by other libraries. Many people had risked their lives to save books from the devastation of war. Because to them, the secret library was a symbol of hope - of their determination to lead a meaningful existence and to rebuild their fractured society. 

This is the story of an extraordinary place and the people who made it happen. It is also a book about human resilience and values. And through it all is threaded the very wonderful, universal love for books and the hope they can bring.
'Just like the body needs food the soul needs books.' Anas Habib"

Ahmad, Aeham "The Pianist from Syria"

Ahmad, Aeham "The Pianist from Syria" (aka The Pianist of Yarmouk) (German: Und die Vögel werden singen. Ich, der Pianist aus den Trümmern) - 2017

I have read quite a few books about Palestinians in Israel (see here) but I believe that this is my first book that I read about Palestinians in Syria and how much the war has affected them.

What a tragic, what a sad story. The author grew up as the son of Palestinian refugees in Syria. His father is blind but tries to do everything for his son so he can have a better future than was given to him.

Unfortunately, this was not to be. The Syrian Civil began in 2011, when Aeham Ahmad was just 22. I kept comparing his life to that of my son who is just a year younger than him. We moved him from one country to the next and there was always a school, medical care, recreational facilities, music teachers, sports groups, the Scouts etc. Anything we wanted for him and his younger brother was there.

Not so for the people in Syria, especially not the Palestinian refugees who were gathered together in a part of Damascus, Yarmouk Camp, that was extremely hard if not impossible to leave.

In the end, Aeham Ahmad was able to escape Syria and really lucky that his family was able to follow him within a year. Many have not been so lucky. I fear for all of them.

The memoir is very well written, the author received some help, but you can hear his voice, his despair about all that has happened to him and his friends. I really loved how he mentioned that the German people had been so extremely kind to him and helped him and his family and friends. Like my family and me, most of our friends have always said we need to help as much as possible. This is a personal story that will hopefully make everyone understand that these are people like you and me who have the same need, wishes, hopes, and dreams. We can all work for a better future by sticking together.

From the back cover:

"An astonishing but true account of a pianist’s escape from war-torn Syria to Germany offers a deeply personal perspective on the most devastating refugee crisis of this century.

Aeham Ahmad was born a second-generation refugee - the son of a blind violinist and carpenter who recognized Aeham's talent and taught him how to play piano and love music from an early age.

When his grandparents and father were forced to flee Israel and seek refuge from the Israeli–Palestinian conflict ravaging their home, Aeham’s family built a life in Yarmouk, an unofficial camp to more than 160,000 Palestinian refugees in Damascus. They raised a new generation in Syria while waiting for the conflict to be resolved so they could return to their homeland. Instead, another fight overtook their asylum. Their only haven was in music and in each other.

Forced to leave his family behind, Aeham sought out a safe place for them to call home and build a better life, taking solace in the indestructible bond between fathers and sons to keep moving forward. Heart-wrenching yet ultimately full of hope, and told in a raw and poignant voice, The Pianist from Syria is a gripping portrait of one man’s search for a peaceful life for his family and of a country being torn apart as the world watches in horror."

Schami, Rafik "The Dark Side of Love"

Schami, Rafik "The Dark Side of Love" (German: Die dunkle Seite der Liebe) - 2004

Rafik Schami has managed to get on my list of all time favourite authors with just three of his books. Luckily, he has written a lot more so I am looking forward to more great novels.

Rafik Schami once said you cannot understand the history and present of the Arabs without the prohibition of love. And with this book he has shown us a great example and hopefully helps us to understand each other better. Apparently, it took him 30 years to write this book. 30 years well spent, even if this had been his only one.

His real name is Suheil Fadél, his pen-name means "friend of Damascus". He fled from his country in 1970 and settled in Germany where he still lives today. All his books are written in German. This book is slightly autobiographical.

This is the story of Farid Mushtak, born in Syria in 1940, into a Syriac-Christian family (like the author). His father is a baker - like the author's …

This is the story of Farid's love to Rana Shahin, a love that cannot be because their families are arch-enemies.

This is the story of the families Mushtak and Shahin who have been enemies for so long that hardly anyone remembers how it all started.

This is the story of Damascus, the capital city of Syria, a city that has lived through difficult times for a long long time.

And finally, this is the story of Syria and its history. Lots of information, especially if you have never read a book about this country.

The book has about 1,000 pages but at the end you think, this was far too short, could have been twice as long. It's just that brilliant!

I read this in the original German language.

Translation of the German back cover:

"In his opulent story mosaic, Rafik Schami tells of a love that must not be, of blood revenge, tribal feuds and family strife, and spans an oriental-colourful picture arc over a century of Syrian history."

Even though this is a lot shorter, it's much better than the blurb on the English back cover which only describes the beginning of the novel:

"A dead man hangs from the portal of St Pauls Chapel in Damascus. He was a Muslim officer and he was murdered. But when Detective Barudi sets out to interrogate the man's mysterious widow, the Secret Service takes the case away from him. Barudi continues to investigate clandestinely and discovers the murderers motive: it is a blood feud between the Mushtak and Shahin clans, reaching back to the beginnings of the 20th century. And, linked to it, a love story that can have no happy ending, for reconciliation has no place within the old tribal structures. Rafik Schamis dazzling novel spans a century of Syrian history in which politics and religions continue to torment an entire people. Simultaneously, his poetic stories from three generations tell of the courage of lovers who risk death sooner than deny their passions. He has also written a heartfelt tribute to his hometown Damascus and a great and moving hymn to the power of love."

Maalouf, Amin "Samarcande"

Maalouf, Amin "Samarkand" (French: Samarcande) - 1988

I think a lot of words just sound like paradise, dream words that take me to a magic place like from 1001 Nights: Samarkand is one of them. Doesn't it just make you think of mosques and minarets, oriental markets and blue tiled places?

Samarkand is written by Lebanese-born French author Amin Maalouf whose works are written in French. But a lot of it has been translated into English.

This novel takes us from the life of poet, mathematician and astronomer Omar Khayyám and his poetry collection Rubaiyat in Samarkand of the 11th century to the voyage of the fictional character Benjamin O. Lesage on the Titanic in 1912. I had never heard of Omar Khayyám and was happy to learn not just about his poetry but especially about his life and that of his contemporaries in an area that is as unknown to me and most people in Europe in that time as it is today. I have learned quite a few things about Persian and Muslim history.

Very well written account of a highly interesting topic. I loved this book.

I also really appreciated the map they had in the back showing the reader all the names of those far away places.

From the back cover:

"Accused of mocking the inviolate codes of Islam, the Persian poet and sage Omar Khayyam fortuitously finds sympathy with the very man who is to judge his alleged crimes. Recognising genius, the judge decides to spare him and gives him instead a small, blank book, encouraging him to confine his thoughts to it alone. Thus begins the seamless blend of fact and fiction that is Samarkand. Vividly re-creating the history of the manuscript of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, Amin Maalouf spans continents and centuries with breathtaking vision: the dusky exoticism of 11th-century Persia, with its poetesses and assassins; the same country's struggles nine hundred years later, seen through the eyes of an American academic obsessed with finding the original manuscript; and the fated maiden voyage of the Titanic, whose tragedy led to the Rubaiyat's final resting place - all are brought to life with keen assurance by this gifted and award-winning writer."

Schami, Rafik "A Hand Full of Stars"

Schami, Rafik "A Hand Full of Stars" (German: Eine Hand voller Sterne) - 1987

Rafik Schami is a Syrian author who has lived in Germany for almost 35 years. He writes in German but has never forgotten his native country and his stories are mainly about that. In this book he tells the story of the son of a baker, well, the young boy tells the story himself, about his problems of growing up but also about the political problems in his country and how he gets involved.

I think Rafik Schami has written part of his own life, he himself is the son of a baker and started writing at a very early age. The fact that the protagonist tells his own story, leads even more to this assumption.

In any case, this is a wonderful story about growing up as well as about the situation in Syria. If you read this, you will notice that the situation has only grown worse in the 25 years since its publication, and I think it would help a lot of people rethinking their opinion about the refugees that come to our countries because they have nowhere else to go anymore. We can learn of the situation in a country where democracy is a foreign word, where people can just get picked up by the police for no reason at all or for something that we all take for granted.

Great read.

I have read two of Rafik Schami's books, so far, but will add more, that I am sure of:
"The Calligrapher’s Secret" (Das Geheimnis des Kalligraphen) - 2008
"Eine deutsche Leidenschaft names Nudelsalat: und andere seltsame Geschichten" [A German passion called noodle salad: and other strange stories]. This one is only available in German, he talks about all the little things that only a foreigner would notice in a host country. I loved these stories just as much as those about Syria.

See more comments on my ThrowbackThursday post in 2026.

From the back cover:

"Amid the turmoil of modern Damascus, one teenage boy finds his political voice in a message of rebellion that echoes throughout Syria and as far away as Western Europe. Inspired by his dearest friend, old Uncle Salim, he begins a journal to record his thoughts and impressions of family, friends, life at school, and his growing feelings for his girlfriend, Nadia. Soon the hidden diary becomes more than just a way to remember his daily adventures; on its pages he explores his frustration with the government injustices he witnesses. His courage and ingenuity finally find an outlet when he and his friends begin a subversive underground newspaper. Warmed by a fine sense of humor, this novel is at once a moving love story and a passionate testimony to the difficult and committed actions being taken by young people around the world."

Schami, Rafik "The Calligrapher’s Secret"

Schami, Rafik "The Calligrapher’s Secret" (German: Das Geheimnis des Kalligraphen) - 2008

Our latest novel was written by the Syrian author Rafik Schami who moved to Germany when he was 25 and started writing in German a couple of years later. His original name is Suhail Fāḍil, his pseudonym means "Friend of Damascus" or "he who comes from Damascus".

Some of us had been reading the book in the original German, others in the translation into English. We think that might have influenced our attitude towards the book.

I loved it. There is a lot of history of calligraphy and that was highly interesting. The author liked to build anticipation by giving away a little beforehand which was not my cup of tea at the beginning but it worked out very well. Lots of details, you could vividly imagine the scenes.

However, even though the story was interesting and I loved reading it, the "annex" about the calligraphy and the history is my favourite part. (Unfortunately, this was completely missing in the English version!!!) The discussion whether the Arab language is God’s language and nothing can be added to it, quite a topic.

As to the English version, the German book cover reads: "Die bewegende Geschichte des Damaszener Kalligraphen Hamid Farsi, der den großen Traum einer Reform der arabischen Schrift verwirklichen will und nicht merkt, in welche Gefahr er sich begibt." (in English: "The moving story of the Damascene calligrapher Hamid Farsi, who wants to achieve the great dream of a reform of the Arabic script and does not realize the danger he risks.") However, the English book cover describes: "Even as a young man, Hamid Farsi is acclaimed as a master of the art of calligraphy. But as time goes by, he sees that weaknesses in the Arabic language and its script limit its uses in the modern world. In a secret society, he works out schemes for radical reform, never guessing what risks he is running. His beautiful wife, Noura, is ignorant of the great plans on her husband’s mind. She knows only his cold, avaricious side and so it is no wonder she feels flattered by the attentions of his amusing, lively young apprentice. And so begins a passionate love story of a Muslim woman and a Christian man." Quite a difference, don't you think?

The problem, as so often, may be the translation. While the German readers knew what was coming, the English readers were waiting for the passionate love story of a Muslim woman and a Christian man to start (which was in there but rather a side story).

But even in the English version, you could see the poetry, the beauty of the words. But it seemed more like a travel guide of Damascus, one story piled on top of each other, too many sub plots.

We believe the story to be a metaphor for the impossibility of a traditional Islamic society to live in this world. The author is using calligraphy to show the fundamentalism, to show that this will not work in the 20th century. Another author who does this beautifully is Orhan Pamuk who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2006. One of my favourite books by him is "My Name is Red". He has also written a very interesting autobiography which is an ode to his home town, as well: "Istanbul. Memories of a City". We suppose the Turkish have avoided this kind of problem with the language by introducing the Latin spelling.

Some quotes I really liked (I read the original, so had to translate the words myself, might not be the same as in the book):

"Gott hat die Gesichter erschaffen, damit wir sie sehen und erkennen. Das Herz macht fromm -, nicht der Schleier." (God created the faces so we can see and recognize them. The heart makes devout, not the veil.)

"Oft stand zur Tarnung über den erotischen Versen ein leicht lesbarer religiöser Spruch." (Often the erotic verses were camouflaged with an easily readable religious saying.)

"Die Erde ist eine Hölle für Wissende, das Fegefeuer für Halbwissende und das Paradies nur für die Unwissenden." (The earth is hell for the knowing, purgatory and paradise for those knowing half  and paradise only for the ignorant.)

We discussed this in our international book club in April 2012.

See more comments on my ThrowbackThursday post in 2025.

From the back cover:

"A new international bestseller from the award-winning author of The Dark Side of Love. Even as a young man, Hamid Farsi is acclaimed as a master of the art of calligraphy. But as time goes by, he sees that weaknesses in the Arabic language and its script limit its uses in the modern world. In a secret society, he works out schemes for radical reform, never guessing what risks he is running. His beautiful wife, Nura, is ignorant of her husbands ambitions, knowing only his cold, avaricious side. So its no wonder she feels flattered by the attentions of his young apprentice. And so begins a passionate love storythe love of a Muslim woman and a Christian man."

I read "Eine deutsche Leidenschafts names Nudelsalat: und andere seltsame Geschichten"  [A German passion called noodle salad: and other strange stories] (not translated into English) and
"Eine Hand voller Sterne" (A Hand Full of Stars) in the meantime and they were both great books.