The prayer of anxiety

Author's name: Mohamed Samir Naddar Publication: Maskelyani Publishing and Distribution Year of publication: 2024 Literary classification: Novel Brief about the book: A village planted in oblivion, shaken by a mysterious explosion of an unknown body in 1977, suddenly turns into a tightly sealed box in which every villager lives his epic: the oppressed rebels seeking freedom and the tyrannical rulers tightening their grip on souls and necks. But the thread of narration only advances to bring us back, shedding light on a harsh decade extending from the June setback in 1967 to the moment of the explosion and the village faces turning into turtles. One event in "Al-Naj'” is narrated by eight different characters, whose stories form a mosaic of the tale in a captivating pattern. The bottom of the novel is a narrative questioning of the setback and what followed — illusions of sovereignty and victory. Who writes the true history: the boot and rifle and chains of iron or the screams of rebellion that never die? And what does 1977 awaken in us? The death of meaning and art or the absurdity of fate and false peace? Isn’t the village "Al-Manasi" a major metaphor for a generation of mutants?