Winner of the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book for
Europe and South Asia.
"A stunning, defiant debut."Â-Guardian
"Hiller brings to his works not only a craftsman's skill but
also a compassion for his characters that proves infectious."Â-Haaretz
"A chilling rites-of-passage novel set in Beirut in 1982
during the killings in the camps."-The Economist
It is the summer of 1982 and Beirut is under siege.
Eighteen-year-old Ivan's parents have just been evacuated from the
city with other members of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
Ivan stays on, interpreting for international medical volunteers in
Sabra refugee camp and working undercover for the PLO. Hoping to get
closer to Eli, a Norwegian physiotherapist, he helps her treat
Youssef, a camp orphan disabled by a cluster bomb. An unexpected
friendship develops between the three and things begin to look up.
But events take a nasty turn when the president-elect is
assassinated. The Israeli army enters Beirut and surrounds the camp,
with Eli and Youssef trapped inside. What happens next makes
international headlines and leaves Ivan scrabbling to salvage
something positive from the chaos.
Mischa Hiller, of EnglishÂ-Palestinian descent, was born in
England in 1962 and grew up in London, Dar es Salaam, and Beirut.
Mischa won the 2009 European Independent Film Festival script
competition for his adaptation of Sabra Zoo. He lives with
his family in Cambridge, England.
Mischa Hiller, of English-Palestinian descent, was born in
England in 1962 and grew up in London, Dar es Salaam and Beirut. Sabra
Zoo won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book in the
Europe and South Asia category in 2011. Mischa also won the 2009
European Independent Film Festival script competition for his
adaptation of the book. His second novel, Shake Off, was published to
critical acclaim in the UK in 2011. He lives with his family in
Cambridge.
www. mischahiller. com
