‘A Map of Home’ is a popular novel written by the author with Arab background Randa Jarrar. The author is a famous essayist, novelist, translator and short story writer. She spent childhood in Kuwait and Egypt. However, the family had to move to the USA after the first Gulf War. ‘A Map of Home’ was first book by Randa Jarrar. It was published in five languages and won several awards (Arab-American Book Award, Hopwood Award). The writer’s next book, ‘Him, Me, Muhammad Ali’ is to be released this year. Randa Jarrar was recognized to be one of the most talented writers of Arab origin under the age of forty in 2010 (Randa Jarrar).
‘A Map of Home’ is a story of an Arab teenage girl Nidali, whose name means ‘struggle’. The main character’s name seems to doom the girl, since her life is indeed full of struggles. Due to the Gulf War, Nidali’s family is forced to move to Egypt and then to Texas. But this does not much change the family’s life to the best. The girl’s parents often have loud and ugly fights using poor language in front of their children. Apart from that, the main character soon starts to have conflicts with her father herself. Waheed (the head of the family) wanted to become a prominent professor someday. But he did not manage to achieve his goal because of the war. As a result, the man wants his daughter to follow his own dreams, at the same time not letting her study far from home (A Map of Home).
Despite all the negative events in the life of the main character, her story is told in purely cheerful manner. Nidali takes all hardships on her way as normal things, and is full of loving to her parents although she often does not understand them (A Map of Home).
The novel obviously has autobiographical elements. The author herself had to go through the hardships of leaving home because of war (Randa Jarrar). However, the story is not focused on the tragic events and how they influence people. The life of the teenage girl and her vision of the world are the main components of the storyline. It is easy to notice how the little girl’s thoughts in the beginning of the book differ from the young charming lady’s ones in the end of the story (A Map of Home).
The narrative is told in a light and very cheerful manner. The book contains numerous episodes which could make anybody laugh. Everything the girl sees, hears, experiences, feels and thinks about is depicted through her vision of the world, so the reader might feel as if s/he lives the life along with Nidali. She compares her mother’s hair with the balloon of thoughts and her father with the running moustache which turns the story into a cartoon in the reader’s mind (A Map of Home).
It is worth mentioning that not falling in love with the main character of the book is impossible. Nidali is always full of positive energy, confidence and love. The girl is curious and seeks for her own explanation of everything. Nevertheless, the best things about her are that she manages to see good sides in many events that seem to be tragic and does not want to limit herself in any way. It is amazing how Nidali suddenly turns the problem of being ‘rootless’ into the opportunity of having no boundaries. The main character does not judge anybody for their beliefs and lifestyle, but tries to find out as much as possible and borrows the best of what she learns. Thus, one of the main themes of the book is gaining freedom in the society which set various types of limits, be they religious, political or cultural ones (A Map of Home).
Another important theme is the relationships between children and parents. Nidali dreams of leaving the house of her parents and living alone, because she hates the fights between her parents as well as being told what to do by her father. Once she even attempts to escape from home. However, it is evident that the girl loves her mother and father no matter what from the gentle manner in which she describes them. Her escape may be explained by the desire to be free rather than the lack of love and respect (A Map of Home).
It is important to remember that the book is a work of art. One of its strong sides is conveying some of the conversations in Arabic with their literal translation into English. This provides the reader with the opportunity to discover Arabic culture, since language and culture are always closely connected. The way in which people speak reflects the way the see the world. At the same time, the expressions in Arabic show that the representatives of the Middle Eastern culture are similar to all other people in the world. For instance, the phrase ‘May God brighten the world for you’(A Map of Home) may serve as the reflection of the deep faith in God. On the other hand, phrases like ‘polla foya polla s*ata’ – ‘the more you eat the more you sh*t’(A Map of Home) prove that despite all the religious limits, all people have their weaknesses.
Works Cited
"Randa Jarrar." FresnoState. California State University, 4 Nov. 2015. Web. 04 May 2016.
Jarrar, Randa. A Map of Home: A Novel. New York: Other Press, 2008. Print.
