Amity : a novel

Amity provides a window to the wreckage caused by wars—the destruction and displacement that leave pain and life-long psychological disorders, here specifically within the contexts of Yugoslavia’s dissolution and Iran’s revolution.Payvand, an Iranian refugee and activist, still plagued with nightmares, meets a Ragusa, a Yugoslavian refugee whose pockets are loaded with stones as she prepares to walk into the water and end her life, a life that has become intolerable since the loss of those most dear to her.Payvand listens to Ragusa’s story and Ragusa promises to postpone her suicide at least until she hears Payvand’s story in turn. In a novel that strives to raise awareness about the extent to which elites manipulate nations into wars, with total disregard for the lives of millions like Payvand and Ragusa, it is the warmth of personal relationships and friendships forged that are key to healing.“Apart from being a beautifully written and heart-wrenching novel, this is an important book, a timely book that needs to be read and, read now. It speaks powerfully to the devastating anguish of families ripped apart by war and conflict, of loved ones tortured and killed — we hear the news, but it all happens outside of us, far away, and our empathy is unavoidably remote. The imagery in this novel is so vivid, I felt as if I were watching a movie, sitting with Payvand and Ragusa as they forged an unbreakable bond while retelling the stories of their shattered lives. When I finished the book, I felt as if they too were my friends, to be remembered and carried in my heart.”—Lisa de Nikolits, author of A Glittering Chaos, The Witchdoctor's Bones and Beneath the Cracks She Fell Amity provides a window to the wreckage caused by warsthe destruction and displacement that leave pain and life-long psychological disorders, here specifically within the contexts of Yugoslavias dissolution and Irans revolution. Payvand, an Iranian refugee and activist, still plagued with nightmares, meets a Ragusa, a Yugoslavian refugee whose pockets are loaded with stones as she prepares to walk into the water and end her life, a life that has become intolerable since the loss of those most dear to her. Payvand listens to Ragusas story and Ragusa promises to postpone her suicide at least until she hears Payvands story in turn. In a novel that strives to raise awareness about the extent to which elites manipulate nations into wars, with total disregard for the lives of millions like Payvand and Ragusa, it is the warmth of personal relationships and friendships forged that are key to healing. Apart from being a beautifully written and heart-wrenching novel, this is an important book, a timely book that needs to be read and, read now. It speaks powerfully to the devastating anguish of families ripped apart by war and conflict, of loved ones tortured and killed we hear the news, but it all happens outside of us, far away, and our empathy is unavoidably remote. The imagery in this novel is so vivid, I felt as if I were watching a movie, sitting with Payvand and Ragusa as they forged an unbreakable bond while retelling the stories of their shattered lives. When I finished the book, I felt as if they too were my friends, to be remembered and carried in my heart. Lisa de Nikolits, author of A Glittering Chaos, The Witchdoctor's Bones and Beneath the Cracks She Fell Through the braided narratives of three spirited characters, this novel bears witness to the infamous “American” crime that metastasized uber-civilized Montreal. Everyone wants a Marin at her party. Bohemian and beautiful, this engineering student is as passionate about constructing sets for theater and opera as she is about Trey, the one man she can finally trust. Deirdre is a first year engineering major, earnest and perceptive, but too naïve to know that frat boys can be dangerous. Montreal columnist Jenean is feisty and urbane, a feminist who longs for peace between the sexes even as she ponders splitting from her live-in partner. In the face of startling and heartbreaking tragedy, we witness fierce love and bonding. This is not your everyday love story. The Montreal Massacre is lodged in Canadian memory: on December 6, 1989, fourteen female engineering students were murdered in their classroom. Set in that tragic historical moment, on two college campuses fraught with gendered antagonisms, this novel follows the imagined lives of women as they happen headlong into the December 6 tragedy. Were In Cold Blood to marry The Poisonwood Bible, this novel would be their progeny: a story disarmingly accurate and bountifully probing that explores the profundity of deepest love and unimaginable loss. Amity provides a window to the wreckage caused by war and conflict that leave behind destruction, displacement, pain and struggle resulting in life-long and irreparable psychological disorders. It is a story about the lives of various people who are dealing with the devastation of war and conflict, here specifically within the contexts of Yugoslavia's dissolution and Iran's revolution. Payvand, an Iranian refugee and activist, still plagued with nightmares, meets a Ragusa, a Yugoslavian refugee whose pockets are loaded with stones ready to walk into the water and end a life that feels intolerable since the loss of those most dear to her. The two women form an incredibly strong bond as Payvand listens to Ragusa's story and Ragusa decides to stay alive long enough to hear Payvand's story, told to her over several days. It is the warmth of friendship that is key to what happiness can be found by these characters in a world that is seemingly incapable of learning from its past mistakes. Fiction. Middle Eastern Studies. Payvand, An Iranian Refugee And Activist Still Plagued By Nightmares, Meets A Suicidal Yugoslavian Refugee, Ragusa, Her Pockets Loaded With Stones Ready To Walk Into The Water. As Payvand Listens To Ragusa's Story, Ragusa Decides To Stay Alive Long Enough To Hear Payvand's. In A Novel That Strives To Raise Awareness About The Extent To Which Elites Do And Have Manipulated Various Parts Of The Globe Into Wars That Serve Their Ends, And Have Done So In Total Disregard For The Consequences To The Lives Of Millions Of People Like Payvand And Ragusa, Friendship Is The Key To What Happiness Can Be Found In A World That Is Seemingly Incapable Of Learning From Its Past Mistakes. Amity Provides A Window To The Destruction, Displacement, Pain And Struggle, And The Life-long And Irreparable Psychological Distress Caused By War And Conflict.