Farewell, Babylon: Coming of Age in Jewish Baghdad - Softcover

Kattan, Naim

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1551927993 ISBN 13: 9781551927992

Publisher: Raincoast Books, 2006

Synopsis

In Farewell, Babylon, Naim Kattan takes readers into the heart of exotic mid-19th-century Baghdad's then-teeming Jewish community. Jews had lived in Iraq for 25 centuries, long before the time of Christ or Muhammad, but anti-Semitism and nationalism were on the rise. In this beautifully written memoir, a young boy comes of age and describes his discoveries — of work, literature, patriotism, the joys of lazy Sundays swimming in the Tigris. He also talks eloquently of his greatest discovery: women and love. This is a story of roots and exile, of thirst for life and life's experiences. However, more than that it is a tribute to a lost world, an ancient Eastern city in which Iraq’s Kurds, Bedouins, Sunnis, Shiites, Chaldeans, Catholics, and Jews all lived together in a rough, rewarding sort of harmony.

About this title

Review:

Kattan... brings a first-hand immediacy to his Baghdad memoir which marks it out as a minor masterpiece of the genre... Shot through with an artless ardour which lingers long in the reader s mind. --'Sunday Telegraph'

Iraq s most distinguished Jewish writer-in-exile... The plight of Jewry is recorded in Farewell, Babylon in spare, elegiac tones... A vital book. --'Sunday Times'

Naim Kattan... tells of the last years in Baghdad, when Jews awaited the possibility and the permits to leave Iraq... also gives a poignant account of a young man seeking insight into the mysteries and joys of life in an inhibitory society. --'The Independent'

About the Author:

Naim Kattan has written more than 30 books of fiction, poetry, and criticism. He has received many awards, including France's Légion d'Honneur and the Order of Canada.

About this edition

• Publisher: Raincoast Books
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 1551927993
• ISBN 13: 9781551927992
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 222