Description: A Long Walk from Gaza is a coming-of-age story that follows its teenage protagonist through her battles with a strict and abusive father, the exhilaration of her first crush, confrontations with occupation soldiers, and the heartbreak of leaving her home Gaza for a new life in Europe.
Brief description: Born in Gaza in 1978, Asmaa Alatawna is a Palestinian Bedouin from the desert of Al Naqb, and a French citizen and resident of Toulouse since 2001. A graduate of English literature from the University of Al Azhar, she then obtained her masters in geopolitics from Sciences Po. While in Gaza, Asmaa worked at the Spanish press agency EFE. Today, she is a member of the Institute for Experimental Arts La Petite board in the cinema domain. Alatawna is known for her involvement in art and gender issues.
Review Quotes: "[The novel] recounts the individual struggle of a woman carving out a path to create a free life for herself. This woman is completely absorbed by finding freedom from all authority--the Israeli occupation, her father, and society alike. It is a novel written with honesty, courage, and a willingness to be confrontational, without fear of judgment. It is as if the writer is using her own words to say what the protagonist says to an Israeli soldier who tells her to get off the bus, 'I'm not getting off and I'm not moving from here. Stab me if you want!'"---- Maha Hassan