Nada A. Jarrar Nada A. Jarrar i(A80830 works by) (a.k.a. Nada Awar Jarrar)
Gender: Female
Heritage: Lebanese
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Works By

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1 1 y separately published work icon An Unsafe Haven Nada A. Jarrar , Sydney : HarperCollins (United Kingdom) , 2016 18492362 2016 single work novel

'Imagine trying to live a normal life in a world which changes daily and where nothing is certain …

'Hannah has deep roots in Beirut, the city of her birth and of her family. Her American husband, Peter, has certainty only in her. They thought that they were used to the upheavals in Lebanon, but as the war in neighbouring Syria enters its fifth year, the region's increasingly fragile state begins to impact on their lives in wholly different ways.

'An incident in a busy street brings them into direct contact with a Syrian refugee and her son. As they work to reunite Fatima with her family, her story forces Hannah to face the crisis of the expanding refugee camps, and to question the very future of her homeland.

'And when their close friend Anas, an artist, arrives to open his exhibition, shocking news from his home in Damascus raises uncomfortable questions about his loyalty to his family and his country.

'Heartrending and beautifully written, An Unsafe Haven is a universal story of people whose lives are tested and transformed, as they wrestle with the anguish of war, displacement and loss, but also with the vital need for hope.' (Publication summary)

 

 

1 1 y separately published work icon A Good Land Nada A. Jarrar , London : HarperCollins Australia , 2009 Z1670052 2009 single work novel

'The old neighbourhood block in Beirut was home to an ever-changing population as the fighting intensified and lessened. But three people were almost always there. The older Polish woman, Margo, refugee from her past, her country and family after another war, spinning her tales of freedom fighters, itinerant peoples, despair and courage. And Lebanese born and bred Layla, only recently returned from Australia after fleeing the earlier civil war to teach her students again. Palestinian Kamal; refugee, writer and lecturer, whose cherished faith in a free, tolerant, democratic Lebanon has been shattered by difficulties of living there now. Among their friends are older politicians, university friends often visiting from lucrative posts in Europe or the USA, and local political activists.

The retaliation raids by Israel and the political aftermath further shatter their community: some flee to the mountains, many leave the country. Some like Layla try to identify more deeply what it is that holds her to this place, why she cannot leave.

Nada Awar Jarrar has written a powerful and moving novel, full of character and insight, of joy and tears, which makes us understand how people can stand such daily fear of violence and can continue to have faith in the country of their heart.' (From the publisher's website.)

1 1 y separately published work icon Dreams of Water Nada A. Jarrar , London : HarperCollins Australia , 2007 Z1693034 2007 single work novel As a young man disappears, his family is left fearing for what may have become of him. Seeking a new life and release from her sorrow, Aneesa, his sister, leaves her home and moves to London. Yet Aneesa finds she cannot get on with her life without some certainty. Meanwhile, back home, Aneesa's mother is grieving for her son and seeks solace in the company of a young boy, convinced he is her son reincarnated. Aneesa reluctantly returns home, determined to uncover the truth behind her brother's disappearance, and rekindle the sense of belonging that she left behind.
1 Betrayal but a Small Part of the Larger Deception Nada A. Jarrar , 2004 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 24 November 2004; (p. 17)
Nada Jarrar, author of Somewhere, Home, a fictionalised account of the life of her Arab grandmother, claims that Norma Khouri perpetrated a betrayal of Arab women in her book Forbidden Love. Jarrar also notes that 'It is sad that she [Khouri] was able to find so willing an audience in the West.'
3 8 y separately published work icon Somewhere, Home Nada A. Jarrar , London : Heinemann , 2003 Z1100524 2003 single work novel A moving novel about modern Lebanon, this story intermingles the lives of three women and explores their reactions to war, loss, displacement, exile and return to the homeland. This is Nada A. Jarrar's first novel.
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