by Sarah Aziza
First published 2025
In October 2019, Sarah Aziza lies in a hospital bed, her body ravaged by anorexia. The daughter and granddaughter of Gazan refugees faces a brush with death that cracks open both personal and ancestral wounds. A simple cup of apricot yogurt in the hospital cafeteria triggers memories of her deceased Palestinian grandmother's voice. Dreams follow, pulling Sarah deeper into family secrets that span three generations from Gaza to the Midwest to New York City. As she fights to recover, Sarah discovers how her own trauma mirrors decades of Palestinian displacement and erasure. Her grandmother's stories reveal patterns of survival that stretch back a century. The recovery process becomes inseparable from reclaiming her heritage. Sarah learns to resist the pressures of assimilation and denial that have shaped her family's American experience. She begins asserting herself in ways that honor both her ancestors and her own healing. The memoir weaves together multiple timelines and languages as Sarah grasps how her personal struggle connects to collective Palestinian resilience and love.
Genres: historical-fiction, autobiography, memoir, biography-memoir, family-drama, cultural-studies
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, reclaiming-identity
Setting: Gaza, Midwest, New York City
Period: 2019
400 pages · Hardcover · Catapult
Content warnings: eating-disorder, mental-illness