The Stone of Laughter
A novel set in Beirut during the Lebanese civil war, which traces the personal transformation of an apolitical observer in the person of a 20-ish gay teacher named Khalil into an active combatant. Barakat's elliptical style is frustrating at times, and I'm not sure if re-reading would clarify some passages (as some of the Amazon reviews seemed to imply), or make Khalil's transformation (the change is signalled by his rape of a female neighbor) seem less sudden and unmotivated. As those who read the long quote from this novel that I posted earlier will understand, the novel is depressing enough that I doubt I'll be putting that to the test. Barakat does capture the emotional effects of living in a city under siege very well, and the novel is worth reading on that count alone, I think.