This unforgettable novel puts human faces on the Syrian war with the immigrant story of a beekeeper, his wife, and the triumph of spirit when the world becomes unrecognizable.
“A beautifully crafted novel of international significance that has the capacity to have us open our eyes and see.”—Heather Morris, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz
WINNER OF THE ASPEN WORDS LITERARY PRIZE • FINALIST FOR THE DAYTON LITERARY PEACE PRIZE • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY REAL SIMPLE
Nuri is a beekeeper and Afra, his wife, is an artist. Mornings, Nuri rises early to hear the call to prayer before driving to his hives in the countryside. On weekends, Afra sells her colorful landscape paintings at the open-air market. They live a simple life, rich in family and friends, in the hills of the beautiful Syrian city of Aleppo—until the unthinkable happens. When all they love is destroyed by war, Nuri knows they have no choice except to leave their home. But escaping Syria will be no easy task: Afra has lost her sight, leaving Nuri to navigate her grief as well as a perilous journey through Turkey and Greece toward an uncertain future in Britain.
Nuri is sustained only by the knowledge that waiting for them is his cousin Mustafa, who has started an apiary in Yorkshire and is teaching fellow refugees beekeeping. As Nuri and Afra travel through a broken world, they must confront not only the pain of their own unspeakable loss but dangers that would overwhelm even the bravest souls. Above all, they must make the difficult journey back to each other, a path once so familiar yet rendered foreign by the heartache of displacement.
Moving, intimate, and beautifully written, The Beekeeper of Aleppo is a book for our times: a novel that at once reminds us that the most peaceful and ordinary lives can be utterly upended in unimaginable ways and brings a journey in faraway lands close to home, never to be forgotten.
Praise for The Beekeeper of Aleppo
“This book dips below the deafening headlines, and tells a true story with subtlety and power.”—Esther Freud, author of Mr. Mac and Me
“This compelling tale had me gripped with its compassion, its sensual style, and its onward and lively urge for resolution.”—Daljit Nagra, author of British Museum
“This novel speaks to so much that is happening in the world today. It’s intelligent, thoughtful, and relevant, but very importantly it is accessible. I’m recommending this book to everyone I care about.”—Benjamin Zephaniah, author of Refugee Boy
This was a great book that I probably would have missed out on if it hadn't been for the Bookclub for Introverts. it's the story of a husband, who used to be a beekeeper, and his wife, who have had to leave their war-torn home in Aleppo, Syria in an attempt to join up with his fellow beekeeper and cousin, who has already gotten out to England with his family.
The story is both moving and harrowing, and gives a real insight into what most of the refugees have had to go through to escape their grave and dire situations in search for a more safe and peaceful existence. It certainly gave me much to think about and to be grateful for.
The story switches between the past and the present - the present being the couple waiting in a B&B in the south coast of England for their upcoming asylum hearing. The past gives the reader a glimpse of their previous existence as well as the journey they had to undergo in order to make it to where they now find themselves. It's a story of loss, but also one that offers hope.
Once started, this was a book I found hard to put down. It's obviously well researched and there was a real sense of reality as the story unfolded. The characters were well written and the writer did not hold back on describing the realities of such a situation. This one is well worth reading, not only because it is a good story, but also because there is so much to learn from reading it.
