Events

Isabella Hammad, author of The Parisian, was born in London and lives between London and New York. She has received the Plimpton Prize, the O. Henry Award, and the Palestine Book Award, and she is a 2019 National Book Award 5 Under 35 Honoree. Her book is being translated into 15 languages.

Isabella Hammad will read from and discuss her novel, The Parisian. The novel tells the story of a pivotal period of Palestinian history through the life of a young man from Nablus named Midhat Kamal. Midhat, the son of a wealthy textile merchant, studies in France during the First World War, and returns to Palestine after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the beginning of the British Mandate. Through the stories of Midhat and his relatives, friends, and enemies, The Parisian explores ideas of power, identity, and enduring love, and paints a picture of Palestinian life before the Nakba.