Salt Houses

Improbably, Salt Houses is the third multi-generational narrative I've read this year. Following the Koreans and the Italians, I've hit on the Palestinians. Hala Alyan's Yacoubs are certainly the most peripatetic of these families, forced by events from their ancestral homes in Palestine into Nablus in '48 and then from Nablus to Kuwait City in '67 and then from Kuwait City to Amman in '90.

Without giving the plot away, I can certainly say that the younger generations find themselves part of the diaspora in Europe and the U.S. some years after that. Phew. Also: these are people who, relatively easily, transport themselves from country-to-country and continent-to-continent is telling. No refugee camps here. And so, it is interesting to consider the history, the sadness, the anger, the resignation, and ultimately the meaning of home from the perspective of people who don't always behave as they should and seemingly "have it all."

Despite the turmoil, Alyan's story centers on the relationships the characters have with one another, parents, spouses, children, siblings, grandparents, and cousins. Alyan's story also moves at a good clip, covering more than half a century in a succinct 300 pages. I was fascinated to read an interview with Alyan (available on Amazon), in which she talks about her writing process, specifically that this began as the story of a young man, presumably Mustafa, in pre-1967 Palestine, because in its final form, the protagonist is his sister, Alia.

Alyan's prose is lovely and the characters are just maddening enough to be real. I found this a quick, but thoughtful, read, and would that I would particularly recommend to someone looking to broaden their reading horizons beyond the "usual" perspectives.

Four stars.