Of Noble Origins: A Palestinian Novel (Modern Arabic Literature: Palestinian) - Softcover

"The book is unique in that Kahlifeh brings together an unusually diverse cast of characters. Generally, books set at the eve of Israel's creation are told either with Israeli or British characters, or with Palestinian and British ones, but in Khalifeh's book Palestinian Christians and Muslims, Jewish immigrants, and British colonial leaders are all treated with equal sympathy. The British Mandate governor is not just an owner or master; indeed, he is a complex character who is half in love with a Palestinian Christian. Most of the book's Jewish characters are similarly complex."--Women s Review of Books

The Qahtan are a Palestinian family that claims to have originated in the Arabian Peninsula, descended from the family of the Prophet Muhammad. This connection has given its members a certain ascendancy in their society, and has influenced their cultural and political choices. The true test occurs when the Qahtanis, like other Palestinians, confront two enemies after the First World War: the British Mandate and the Zionist movement. Observing the gradual and increasing illegal Jewish immigration and land appropriation, the Palestinians come to realize they have been betrayed by a power that "fulfilled their promises to the Jews and reneged on their promises to the Arabs." Sahar Khalifeh brings to the forefront the inner conflicts of Palestinian society as it struggles to affirm its cultural and national identity, save its threatened homeland, and maintain a semblance of normalcy in otherwise abnormal circumstances.