Jamal Saeed

From award-winning author Jamal Saeed comes a collection of stories written in the dark of a Syrian prison. These gripping tales highlight his work as an activist, artist, and author, shedding light on Syria''s ongoing humanitarian crisis and the enduring power of hope. Jamal Saeed wrote the stories in this collection during different stages of his life, but most originated while he was a prisoner of conscience in one of the worst prisons in the world. Other stories were composed after the Syrian uprising in 2011. One story - written in 2009 when he was still in Syria - is about a mythical olive tree that the Syrian military would eventually destroy. Canada plays a role too: Two of the stories were rewritten after his family finally escaped Syria and landed in Kingston, Ontario. In these stories, reality and imagination coexist, and again and again the reader arrives at the truth by exploring the imaginary. Most of Saeed''s pieces include a poetic scene that enables the reader to engage with various characters'' fresh dreams (or their scattered and shattered dreams, as the case may be). Love, beauty, despair, hope, the longing for freedom, the search for lost time, and the impact of the past all coexist and vie for supremacy. Here too there is betting on the future (along with mockery of every kind of bet). In the end, these stories open windows to the inner world of the human soul - and it is also true that every one of Saeed''s stories is based upon a solid fact.

In this moving picture book, inspired by the author?s experience as a Syrian refugee, a child''s profound love for his family''s apple tree gives him courage when he must flee his homeland.When a young boy asks his parents why he doesn?t have a brother or sister, his mother replies that on the day he was born, they planted an apple tree in their front yard. ?The apple tree is your sister,? she says. At night, the boy wraps a blanket around his sister''s trunk and during the day he shares all of his secrets with her. One day, they see helicopters in the sky and his parents tell him they must flee. But how can he leave his sister behind? Instead he digs her up and carries her away from their homeland. When they arrive to a new place, the air is colder and the ground is hard. Home feels so far away. But as his sister grows taller and her branches blossom, the boy realizes that he will always be connected to his homeland, even as he begins to embrace his new one.    This moving and hopeful refugee story is written by Syrian activist Jamal Saeed and co-written by acclaimed poet Jordan Scott. Illustrated by award-winning artist Zahra Marwan, who drew inspiration from her own immigration from Kuwait, this gorgeous book reminds readers that nothing is left behind forever.