The Country of Men

A PAINFUL ABSENCE

Hisham Matar’s debut novel, In The Country Of Men, tells the story of Suleiman, a little boy forced to face the absence of Faraj, his father, and the yearning of Najwa, his mother, a very young woman left alone to take care of herself and her child.

At first, his missing parent goes almost unnoticed by the nine-year old, but we are in Lybia, in the 70s, and Gaddafi decides to take down any opponent by force. It starts with Suleiman’s neighbour’s arrest and goes on with the now more evident absence of Faraj, who is trying to get away from Gaddafi’s wrath. Suleiman is just a kid, he doesn’t understand what is actually happening, he only sees his mother drowning her sorrow with alcohol. As the time passes by, the little boy develops anger against his missing father, he thinks he doesn’t care for his family because he is never there, not even when Najwa is ‘sick’ and needs to take her ‘medicine’.

The book is all about bringing to light the other side of the medal, the more suffering one, the side of all those families that have been destroyed by the choices of just one member. Matar writes beautifully from the perspective of a child, someone who watches everything that happens around him but never truly understands the meaning of looks, of words, of actions, someone who can’t do anything to change his condition.

I think everyone can relate to Suleiman’s feelings towards his missing father because each one of us once in their life has experienced the absence of a loved one. Moreover, people should learn about all the different situations which missing another person provides, from the ones that are closer to us to the furthest.

Sara Morsanuto

4^A TUR

IL CORAGGIO DI ESPRIMERE LA PROPRIA VOCE

Il libro è ambientato a Tripoli, nella Libia del 1979, durante il regime dittatoriale di Gheddafi.

La storia è raccontata dal punto di vista di un bambino di 9 anni, Suleiman, che descrive ogni particolare di quello che succede durante la sua giornata, dalla madre che beve una misteriosa Medicina che poi si rivela essere una bevanda alcolica, ai momenti di gioco con i suoi amici, per poi continuare nella descrizione dell’arresto di Ustadh Rashid.

Ha un carattere protettivo nei confronti della madre, che è spesso triste e depressa a causa delle frequenti assenze del marito Faraj al-Dewani Bu Suleiman. Lui fa spesso strani viaggi di lavoro, che ben presto non si rivelano tali: infatti è a capo di un’organizzazione che si oppone al regime dittatoriale. A fianco della madre, a sostenerla durante le assenze del marito, c’è il fidato amico di Faraj, Mussa.

Questo libro ci ha fatto immergere in uno dei periodi più bui della storia della Libia, dove colui che si opponeva a un regime dispotico veniva considerato come un traditore (Ustadh Rashid). Abbiamo potuto scoprire quante persone, a costo della loro vita, hanno avuto il coraggio di far sentire la loro voce per affermare i propri ideali.

Ci ha anche immerso in una cultura dove i matrimoni combinati sono all’ordine del giorno: nonostante sia più un affare che una questione d’amore la coppia riesce comunque, nel corso del matrimonio, a conoscersi e a proteggersi a vicenda.

Il libro, per concludere, aiuta a far aprire gli occhi e la mente di fronte a un mondo completamente diverso da quello occidentale.

THE COURAGE TO LET ONE'S VOICE BE HEARD

The book is set in Tripoli, Libya in 1979, during Gaddafi’s dictatorial regime.

The story is told from the point of view of a 9-year-old boy, Suleiman, who describes every detail of what happens during his day, from his mother drinking a mysterious medicine that turns out to be an alcoholic drink, to moments of play with his friends, and then continues in the description of the arrest of Ustadh Rashid.

He has a protective character towards his mother, who is often sad and depressed because of the frequent absences of her husband Faraj al-Dewani Bu Suleiman. He often makes strange business trips, which soon do not turn out to be such: in fact, he is the head of an organization that opposes the dictatorial regime. At his mother’s side, supporting her during her husband’s absence, is Faraj’s trusted friend, Moosa.

This book has plunged us into one of the darkest periods in the history of Libya, where the opponent of a despotic regime was considered a traitor (Ustadh Rashid). We have been able to discover how many people, at the cost of their lives, have had the courage to make their voice heard to affirm their ideals.

It has also immersed us in a culture where arranged marriages are commonplace: although it is more a business than a matter of love the couple still manages, during their marriage, to get to know each other and protect each other.

To conclude, the book helps to open one’s eyes and mind in front of a world completely different from the western one.

Serena Pitton, Konynsola Oduse, Nicoletta Lezi

4^A TUR

CHI È MIO PADRE?

Nessuno al mondo è un romanzo con un lessico semplice e con molti dialoghi. Nella prima metà, la narrazione si presenta un po’ lenta, mentre nella seconda parte, che inizia con la cattura di Ustadh Rashid, il vicino di casa del protagonista, la storia diventa più scorrevole e coinvolgente. La presenza di un lessico semplice fa sì che il libro possa essere letto non solo dagli adulti ma anche dai ragazzi.

La suspense cresce quando iniziano gli arresti, prima del vicino di casa e poi anche del padre del protagonista, entrambi oppositori al regime di Gheddafi.

Il narratore del libro è un bambino di nove anni che è costretto a crescere senza la piena presenza dei genitori, perché il padre era sempre all’estero per lavoro, o almeno fingeva di esserlo, e la madre era spesso depressa e fingeva di curarsi prendendo una medicina, mentre in realtà assumeva alcolici (ma era vietato soprattutto alle donne durante il dominio di Gheddafi). Il comportamento di Suleiman, il protagonista, cambia a causa dell’assenza del padre e a causa della madre che, invece di aiutarlo, sta male e non è mai presente per lui. Da ragazzo gentile e tranquillo diventa così un po' bullo e aggressivo.

Quando viene rilasciato dalla polizia e torna a casa, il padre decide, unitamente alla moglie, di mandare Suleiman in Egitto da un amico di famiglia. Qui il ragazzino maturerà più velocemente, trovandosi senza i suoi genitori e in un altro Paese.

Il libro ci permette di capire molto bene la situazione in cui si trova il protagonista. Nascono degli interrogativi, non solo al protagonista, ma anche al lettore.

La domanda che ci poniamo è: cos’è che porta la madre di Suleiman alla depressione quando il marito non c’è? Che cosa la spaventa? Sono troppi i quesiti a cui lui non sa rispondere, proprio perché è ancora un bambino.

WHO IS MY FATHER?

In the Country of Men is a book with a simple vocabulary and lots of dialogues. In the first half, the storytelling is a bit slow, while in the second half, which starts with the capture of Ustadh Rashid, the protagonist’s neighbour, the story becomes smoother and more engaging. The book can be read by both adults and teenagers thanks to its flowing vocabulary.

The suspense develops when the imprisonments start, first with his neighbour and then with the father of the main character, because both were opponents of Gaddafi’s regime.

The book’s narrator is a nine-year-old child who is forced to grow up without the full presence of his parents, as his father was always abroad on business, or at least he pretended to be, while his mum was often depressed pretending to take care of herself with a medicine. As a matter of fact, she drank alcohol, which was forbidden, especially for women, during Gaddafi’s rule.

Suleiman’s behaviour, the protagonist, changes due to his father’s absence and because of his mother who, instead of helping her child, is sick and is never present for him. From a nice and quiet teenager, he becomes kind of a bully and aggressive. When his father is released by the police and comes home, he decides, together with his wife, to send Suleiman to Egypt to a family friend. Here he will grow up more quickly without his parents and in a foreign country.

The book makes us clearly understand the situation Suleiman is in. Many questions have arisen, not only for the protagonist, but also for the reader.

The question we are asking ourselves is: what leads Suleiman’s mother to depression when her husband is not at home? What scares her? There are too many questions he cannot answer just because he is still a child.

Giada Sovran, Cristal Miorin

3^A TUR