Susan Abulhawa

1940. In the small village of Ein Hod, Palestine, a father leads a procession of his family and workers through the olive groves. It is time for the harvest and as the green fruits drop onto the orchard floor the father is contented by the cycle of the seasons, and by his sons, who are growing up to be strong and healthy. In 1948, residents of Ein Hod are forcibly removed by the newly formed State of Israel and taken to the Jenin refugee camp, where Amal is born. But during the family's eviction from their ancestral village, Ishmael, Amal's brother, is stolen in the mayhem of people fleeing for their lives. Just a baby, Ishmael is raised by a Jewish family and grows up as David, an Israeli soldier. It is not until the 1967 war when Yousef, Amal's eldest brother, comes face to face with David, his brother - the Jew. What follows is an absorbing and intensely moving story in which a suicide bomber is given a name, face and life of a man pushed to incomprehensible limits; an Arab girl of humble beginnings escapes her destiny and lives the "American Dream," which her soul cannot reconcile, and a nation of destitute refugees, living under the general label of "terrorists," emerge in the context of an unredeemed history. Set in the midst of the 20 th century's most intractable political conflicts, The Scar of David weaves history, friendship, love, frayed identity, terrorism, exhaustion of spirit, surrender and courage into a gripping, poignant and significant novel.

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