Review: 'A Thousand Farewells' by Nahlah Ayed

“People are not quotes or clips, used to illustrate stories about war and conflict. People are the story, always.” (Page 324) – Nahlah Ayed

Not many people want her job, but Nahlah Ayed thrives on it. As a war correspondent for the CBC her job takes her right into the action and grief of the chaotic Middle East and her task is to report back. Her goal: to tell the story of the people and have it be heard.

How do you interview someone who just lost a loved one, or who just had their house bombed, and then talk about how they have no real human rights? Even in the midst of a mass grave near Hillah Iraq, Ayed found a way to do her job right. As a reporter relaying the news of the Middle East back home, Nahlah Ayed understands on a deeper level what these people are going through. At the age of six, Ayed’s family uprooted their life in Winnipeg for a life in the Amman New Camp or rather Al-Wihdat, a refugee camp for seven years. The culture shock was traumatic but life changing and would be one of the reasons she became a journalist.

Nahlah Ayed’s life has been consumed by covering stories in the Middle East and she neatly wove them into this book. A Thousand Farewells describes the political landscape in the Middle East, tells the story of the people, and provides a personal account of what Ayed went through. Her memoir uses individual story bites and incorporates them into a bit of a history lesson. Ayed ‘fills in the spaces’, between the bombings, shootings, and terrifying war, with people, the ones who are affected by the chaos of the Middle East. She’ll tell you Habib’s story, a man who owns a pub in West Beirut who stayed open during the civil war. She’ll tell you about a man that walked to Europe. She’ll tell you about Waseem a friend of hers and his new family. Everyone has a different story and for Ayed those stories are the ones worth telling. This is what works in this book. I want to hear about the people. I want to hear about what happens off camera and behind the scenes. I especially want it translated into a dialogue that I can understand. Ayed explains the Middle East in what I think is the simplest way possible.

I would definitely add a map and possibly a family tree to this book. I added my own map and taped it to the back cover. Many times Ayed changes locations or refers back to one and sometimes it can get a tad confusing. Also I might change the length of the chapters. I seem to read books faster when the chapters are shorter, even if there are more. This book is a great read for any aspiring journalists. It tells the story of the people in a compelling way. A good journalist understands their interviewees and what they are going through. It’s not just about questions, answers, and facts; it’s about knowing how people are thinking, and feeling and being able to describe the situation to your audience.

As for other non-fiction books I’ve read (such as Amish Grace, Freakonomics, and Eat, Pray, Love) none compare to Ayed’s account of the Middle East. The subject matter is incredibly different and told in a sporadic way that keeps the reader interested. Not only is she telling the story of others she's  living it too. The best part of her story is how she helps the reader understand the complexities and depth of wars we only hear about through headlines. She connects the reader to another side of the world. 

As I read this book, one of the many messages I took away from it was how fortunate we are here in Canada. That is why the glass is half full this week. Sometimes it’s hard to find that perspective. We all joke about having ‘first world problems’, but it’s true. Most of the time we need a little perspective as to how big or small our problems actually are. Reading this book helped me appreciate what I have and on a journalistic level how to be compassionate when interviewing others.