Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book to review.
Where the Wind Calls Home by Samar Yazbek is a non-linear narrative which embraces reliving memory. The Syrian protagonist, Ali, caught in the balance between life and death, returns to the past in an attempt to make sense of the immediate present. This return charts Ali’s coming-of-age as well as his home country’s descent into war. At the centre is a focus on the human cost of this war as young men are sacrificed and families are torn apart by grief.
In the beginning, Yazbek’s exposition felt too dense, with repetitive description emphasising Ali’s confusion as he appears to wake up in the past and present simultaneously. This lack of clarity is no doubt meant to reflect our protagonist’s predicament, but it requires the reader to place trust in Yazbek’s craft and at times it felt unnecessarily complicated.
But, Yazbek’s storytelling is rich and the clarity we crave is eventually delivered. Ali’s memories are an attempt to piece together the events which lead to the moment he and fellow soldiers were hit by a friendly-fire bomb. Yazbek’s non-linear choice explores how, while Ali’s conscription was swift, life as he and his family knew it had been derailing long before this.
Towards the end, Yazbek’s writing is exceptionally lyrical, especially when depicting the bond between Ali and his mother, Nahla. Thus, those who enjoyed Ocean Vuong’s ‘Time is a Mother’ will no doubt enjoy Yazbek’s style here.
Those in search of a story from a non-Western perspective will also enjoy this, with Yazbek’s focus on the human cost and the innocence and children lost in war being reminiscent of Khaled Hosseini’s work.
And, of course, the richness of this story in English is thanks to Leri Price, whose translation captures Yazbek’s intentions and homage to the Syrian people.
Kristiana Reed 
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