My Brother, My Land, Sami Hermez
My Brother, My Land, Sami Hermez
List: $24.99 | Sale: $17.50
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My Brother, My Land
A Story from Palestine

Author: Sami Hermez, Sireen Sawalha

Narrator: Neil Shah

Unabridged: 11 hr 31 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 03/25/2025


Synopsis

A riveting and unapologetic account of Palestinian resistance, the story of one family's care for their land, and a reflection on love and heartache while living under military occupation.

In 1967, Sireen Sawalha's mother, with her young children, walked back to Palestine against the traffic of exile. My Brother, My Land is the story of Sireen's family in the decades that followed and their lives in the Palestinian village of Kufr Ra'i. From Sireen's early life growing up in the shadow of the '67 War and her family's work as farmers caring for their land, to the involvement of her brother Iyad in armed resistance in the First and Second Intifada, Sami Hermez, with Sireen Sawalha, crafts a rich story of intertwining voices, mixing genres of oral history, memoir, and creative nonfiction.

Through the lives of the Sawalha family, and the story of Iyad's involvement with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hermez confronts listeners with the politics and complexities of armed resistance and the ethical tensions and contradictions that arise, as well as with the dispossession and suffocation of people living under occupation and their ordinary lives in such times. Whether this story leaves listeners discomforted, angry, or empowered, they will certainly emerge with a deeper understanding of the Palestinian predicament.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Emily on June 20, 2024

“My mornings in Kufr Ra’i often left me oscillating between serenity and unease. When a rooster cackles, a nearby dog barks, and the birds chirp through a pleasant summer breeze, one can momentarily lose sight of who is in control of this land. The hills in the distance hum secrets of the morning de......more

Goodreads review by Christian on May 25, 2024

History may be told through textbooks, but this book had me realize that it is meant to be experienced and absorbed through family memories and tales. This co-authored familial biography transported me through the eyes of children, parents, martyrs, and more. A journey forcing you to re-evaluate the......more

Goodreads review by I on May 22, 2024

I haven’t read this but I will get to it. However, here’s a 5 star review to spite Andy down here somewhere (and any zio at this point)......more

Goodreads review by nada on June 01, 2024

So beautifully written and does such an incredible job of showing how the historical events in Palestine played out on the ground and in an individual families life. Unfortunately, the story of this family is far from unusual, and many families suffer the same trials and hardships of life under mili......more

Goodreads review by Stephanie on September 16, 2024

“My mornings in Kufr Ra’i often left me oscillating between serenity and unease. When a rooster cackles, a nearby dog barks, and the birds chirp through a pleasant summer breeze, one can momentarily lose sight of who is in control of this land. The hills in the distance hum secrets of the morning de......more