The Burning Cedars
The Burning Cedars provides a poignant and pragmatic account of the Lebanese civil war and ensuing turmoil while candidly unraveling the intricate secrets and at times turbulent relationships of a family whose heartbreaking struggles and emotional triumphs extended over three generations. The unpredictable and surprising turns and twists of each chapter continue to resonate with readers long after the last page has been turned over. At a time when Lebanon was thrust into the grips of a long and vicious civil war, the author offers an honest, sometimes tragic, sometimes funny, but always heartfelt view of his fascinating country and its people. The Burning Cedars follows the life of a privileged young boy whose grandfather, a prominent village doctor amassed great wealth and power only to have it squandered away by the family or destroyed during the war. The grandmother, a powerful and domineering woman whose intense hatred for the boy's mother ignited the flames of a volatile relationship which could be described as cruel at best. The distant and uncaring brother and the unmarried and loving uncle, who concealed a deep and unforgiving illness, must all work together as a family to survive the atrocities of the war. In the midst of all the chaos, the young boy's own struggles with loneliness, fear and sadness are revealed, while happier days spent in Egypt and America all come together seamlessly in this fascinating and gripping true story.