In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar Reviewed by Yvonne Zipp
Christian Science Monitor
"Suleiman lives on Mulberry Street, but it's nothing like the Dr. Seuss story. That street was so gentle and boring its hero had to gussy up events to make them worth telling, whereas Suleiman doesn't need to use his imagination at all. Instead of a horse-drawn wagon plodding slowly down the street, the 9-year-old boy sees his best friend's father arrested by the Revolutionary Army, beaten and kicked and carted off in a white car. That's because this Mulberry Street is located in Tripoli, Libya, under the regime of Col. Muammar Qaddafi. In the Country of Men, which was short-listed for last year's Man Booker Prize, is a knockout ? emotionally wrenching and gorgeously written. It is not primarily a political novel; it's about the relationships in one family and about a boy struggling to make sense of events, both public and private, that he has been exposed to far too soon...." Read the entire Christian Science Monitor review.