Where the Wind Calls Home

The potent latest from Yazbek (Planet of Clay) weighs the consequences of the Syrian civil war after a 19-year-old soldier, Ali, survives his patrol station’s 2013 bombing in the Lattakia mountains. Covered in debris, Ali struggles to regain his bearings and then attempts to drag himself to a nearby oak tree for protection. His goal is to climb the tree before moonrise to escape wild animal attacks. As the hours pass, Ali slips into memories of his life before he was forced into joining president Bashar al-Assad’s military. He remembers his fractured relationship with his father; the funeral for his older brother, who died in the war; his adolescent suicidal thoughts; and the guidance he received from village elders and sheikhs. In short chapters, Ali inches closer to the tree while a shadowy, deathlike figure referred to only as “the Other” mirrors his staggered movements amongst the wreckage. The juxtaposition of timelines is effective, and Yazbek establishes poignant correlations between Ali’s civilian life and the violence of war. This slim novel packs a punch. Agent: Yasmina Jraissati, Raya Agency. (Feb.)