Celestial Bodies - Supernormal Reads

Paperback, 243 pages

Published June 21, 2018 by Sandstone Press.

ISBN:: 978-1-912240-16-6
OCLC Number:: 1007047133

(1 review)

In the village of al-Awafi in Oman, we encounter three sisters: Mayya, who marries after a heartbreak; Asma, who marries from a sense of duty; and Khawla, who chooses to refuse all offers and await a reunion with the man she loves, who has emigrated to Canada. These three women and their families, their losses and loves, unspool beautifully against a backdrop of a rapidly changing Oman, a country evolving from a traditional, slave-owning society into its complex present. Through the sisters, we glimpse a society in all its degrees, from the very poorest of the local slave families to those making money through the advent of new wealth.

5 editions

ralentina reviewed Celestial Bodies by Jokha Alharthi

A fragmented family history

3 stars

The first thing I learnt about this book is that it is the first Omani book translated into English. I don't mean to sound harsh, but perhaps that's the most interesting thing about it. Really, it isn't meant as a dismissal of the book: the author is very skillful at painting a picture of life in this small village on the verge of the desert, and the ways it changes over the year. The book is a sort of family saga, told through short fragments, with each chapter focusing on a different member, in a non-chronological order. I was struck by the women characters in the book, who are very well-rounded, victims of their circumstances but incredibly strong.