A Stone in My Hand

Rating:
Summary: An Insightful Gem
Review: At a time when so much violence permeates the Middle East, this "insightful gem" is a must read. The perspective presented here is seldom heard. The reader will gain an understanding of the fear, humiliation, and despair that is endured by so many people in this region. Oh, how I wish that many of our leaders would read this book!

Rating:
Summary: Powerful and inspiring
Review: Clinton's beautifully-written novel is a powerful evocation of people trapped in a cycle of violence and is essential reading. I thoroughly disagree with the previous reviewer's assertion that this book provides a completely one-sided view of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Both sides have been guilty of so many atrocities that any moral credit as victims has long since been used up. Malaak's hope, and the message of the novel, is to move beyond violence, not to defeat oppression with violence - from the stone in the hand to the bomber in the bus.
I also believe that the sentiment expressed by the previous reviewer - that is, that criticism of the Israeli state constitutes anti-semitism - is a dangerous and foolish position to take. If I criticise the leaders of the USA, does that make me anti-American? Actually, in the current climate, perhaps many people think it does...

Rating:
Summary: If you like to read moving stories, read this book.
Review: Eleven year-old Malaak Abed Atieh lives with her mother, her older sister Hend and her older brother Hamid in Gaza City. It's been a month since their father left to look for work as a mechanic in Israel, only to disappear. Every day she climbs up to the roof and waits for him, imagining that she can fly to the prison cell where she is convinced he's being held. She hardly speaks to anybody except her pet bird Abdo.

As tensions mount between the Israelis and Palestinians, Malaak realizes she can't remain in her world of silence anymore. Each day becomes a struggle for her when her mother tells her that her father is dead. It gets even harder when Hamid tells her that he and his friend, Tariq, have become involved in a hate group. When the rest of the family finds out, they know he's in danger and try to get him out of the hate group with no success. Their worst fears are realized when Hamid gets shot in the head one day and has to go to the hospital. Will Hamid remain alive or will he die like his father?

This book made me feel sorry for all of the people who are experiencing war in their home countries. Nobody should have to go through that kind of turmoil in their lives. If I were Hamid, I would not have joined the hate group because violence does not solve problems. What would you have done if you were Hamid? If you like to read moving stories, read this book to find out what happens to Malaak and her family.

--- Reviewed by Ashley Hartlaub



Rating:
Summary: Understanding the scars of war
Review: Eleven-year-old Malaak has stopped talking to her family and friends since her father disappeared a month ago. She spends most of her time on the roof of her building in the Palestinian community of Gaza City. In this refuge, she speaks to her dove Abdo, a gift from her father. In this place, she says, "I soar out of the Gaza Strip. Nothing stops me, not the concrete and razor wire, not the guns, not the soldiers." It is the first intifada of 1988 and Malaak is experiencing the mounting armed conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

When Malaak learns that her father was killed on a bus by a terrorist's bomb, she retreats into an inner world where she sees her father in dreams. All around her, however, the violence increases between the Palestinian youth or "shabab" and the Israeli soldiers. Malaak's mother and her sister Hend decry the violence of Islamic Jihad whom they hold responsible for their father's death. Hamid, Malaak's 12-year-old brother is increasingly drawn in by its angry and uncompromising righteousness. Malaak loves her brother, her protector and a poet, but is scared to see him move increasingly under the influence of others who embrace violence as the solution to the occupation of the Gaza Strip.

The power of A Stone in My Hand is its insightful portrayal of the scars left on those children living in a zone of armed conflict and unending violence. From the silencing of Malaak by grief, to the rash, dangerous decisions of Hamid, we see children living in a world out of their control, coping in ways that are more instinctual than rational. The scars left by the ravages of armed violence are evident. However, for Malaak, the love of her family and the memory of her father provide the balm to soothe her wounds.

Rating:
Summary: The scars of war
Review: Eleven-year-old Malaak has stopped talking to her family and friends since her father disappeared a month before. The roof of her building in the Palestinian community of Gaza City provides her only refuge. It is here that she speaks to her pet dove Abdo, a gift from her father. In this place, she says, "I soar out of the Gaza Strip. Nothing stops me, not the concrete and razor wire, not the guns, not the soldiers." It is the first intifada of 1988 and Malaak experiences the mounting conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

When Malaak learns that her father was killed on a bus by a terrorist's bomb, she retreats to an inner world where she sees her father in dreams. All around her the violence increases as the youth on the streets or the "shabab" take on the Israeli soldiers with stones for weapons. Malaak's mother and her sister Hend, decry the violence of the Islamic Jihad. However, her 12-year-old brother Hamid is drawn in by its angry self-righteousness. Malaak loves her brother, her protector and a poet, but is scared to see him move increasingly under the influence of others in the jihad, who embrace violence as a solution to the occupation of the Gaza Strip.

The power of A Stone in My Hand is its insightful portrayal of the scars left on those children living in a zone of armed conflict and unending violence. From the silencing of Malaak by grief, to the rash and dangerous decisions of Hamid, we see children living in a world out of their control, coping in ways that are more instinctual than rational. The damage made by the ravages of armed violence is evident. However, for Malaak, the love of her family and the memory of her father is the balm to soothe the wounds.

Rating:
Summary: Incredible!
Review: Many people probly are missing out on reading this book- and they definetely need to read this! its a very sad tale of a young palestinian girl who longs for her father's return- he went to look for a job in israel. When turmoil breaks out- malaak is able to stay strong- this is her incredible story. I recommend this 100%

Rating:
Summary: Major disapointment
Review: This "novel" is thinly veiled propaganda, pure and simple. It is a shame that this type of "literature" is aimed at such a young and impressionable audience. This book was part of my child's public school cirriculum, and while it does attempt to illustrate that violence is no solution to the Middle East conflict, it is quite obvious where the author's sensitivities lie. This was a major disappointment, I would not feel comfortable recommending this book to others.

Rating:
Summary: Fatally Flawed
Review: While there is a lot to commend in this book, it is fatally flawed because it gives no background to the Arab-Israeli conflict. The Israeli government is portrayed as a particularly horrible villain oppressing an innocent nation. This book needs an Afterword that, at the very least, explains that the Israelis have suffered tremendously by the Arab nations' refusal to let them live in peace. As it stands, this book is merely another--although sensitively written--volume in a long line of work that is raising up a new generation of anti-Semites.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: Yes, I know, I know. It's only a work of fiction. The author has every right to her expressions, her imagination, her story.

I feel cheated. Propaganda disguised as a novel. Candlewick... how could you?

What next? Hitler as a hero?