What do you think?
Rate this book
Syria's Secret Library: Reading and Redemption in a Town Under Siege
The remarkable story of a small, makeshift library in the town of Daraya, and the people who found hope and humanity in its books during a four-year siege.
Daraya lies on the fringe of Damascus, just southwest of the Syrian capital. Yet for four years it lived in another world. Besieged by government forces early in the Syrian Civil War, its people were deprived of food, bombarded by heavy artillery, and under the constant fire of snipers. But deep beneath this scene of frightening devastation lay a hidden library. While the streets above echoed with shelling and rifle fire, the secret world below was a haven of books.
Long rows of well-thumbed volumes lined almost every bloated editions with grand leather covers, pocket-sized guides to Syrian poetry, and no-nonsense reference books, all arranged in well-ordered lines. But this precious horde was not bought from publishers or loaned by other libraries--they were the books salvaged and scavenged at great personal risk from the doomed city above.
The story of this extraordinary place and the people who found purpose and refuge in it is one of hope, human resilience, and above all, the timeless, universal love of literature and the compassion and wisdom it fosters.
Daraya lies on the fringe of Damascus, just southwest of the Syrian capital. Yet for four years it lived in another world. Besieged by government forces early in the Syrian Civil War, its people were deprived of food, bombarded by heavy artillery, and under the constant fire of snipers. But deep beneath this scene of frightening devastation lay a hidden library. While the streets above echoed with shelling and rifle fire, the secret world below was a haven of books.
Long rows of well-thumbed volumes lined almost every bloated editions with grand leather covers, pocket-sized guides to Syrian poetry, and no-nonsense reference books, all arranged in well-ordered lines. But this precious horde was not bought from publishers or loaned by other libraries--they were the books salvaged and scavenged at great personal risk from the doomed city above.
The story of this extraordinary place and the people who found purpose and refuge in it is one of hope, human resilience, and above all, the timeless, universal love of literature and the compassion and wisdom it fosters.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 2018
104 people are currently reading
2873 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 213 reviews
August 25, 2019
4+ For a while, sights from Syria, terrible sights of ruined towns, children huddling in basements, were shown on our television nightly. Many in the town of Daraya left, this is the story of some who stayed. Reporting in a compassionate voice, Thomson tells their story, maintaining contact by phone or Internet. The way those in this broken town managed yo keep service is unique. I'm not a techie so I don't understand it but it is explained. Amidst the bombings, trying to find food, trying to help the injured, some who loved books found a way to start a library in a small room in the basement in a bombed out basement. For those who could reach this library, the place and the books became a time out of mind.
Their love of books, reading, how they went from building to building aquiring any books in readable condition is beyond admirable. Dangerous with the constant bombings, sniper attacks, it was a risk worth taking. A few women started small schools, so that the children left in this forgotten place would have someplace to go, and to continue their education. Things would get worse as Asad brought the town to it's knees, cutting off food supplies, electricity and constant bombings. As we come, through the author, to know the people he interviewed I felt helpless. They wanted the same things we do, the freedom to do and think the way they wanted, security, family, safety, and books. The right to read what they wanted. A country that was free, it was that for which they were fighting and dying.
It is hard to read this book and not identify with them, to not feel that our country should have been more help. The value of books and what they provide is stressed again and again. It is a common denominator. The book follows these people even when they are forced to leave their homes, their town and also the fate of the secret library. The amazing thing is that these people never gave up hope, a hope that books kept alive.
"i think books are like rain. Wherever rain falls things grow. So hopefully wherever our books land, the person who reads them will gain knowledge, and his or her mind will grow. This in turn will help humanity grow."
ARC from Netgalley.
Their love of books, reading, how they went from building to building aquiring any books in readable condition is beyond admirable. Dangerous with the constant bombings, sniper attacks, it was a risk worth taking. A few women started small schools, so that the children left in this forgotten place would have someplace to go, and to continue their education. Things would get worse as Asad brought the town to it's knees, cutting off food supplies, electricity and constant bombings. As we come, through the author, to know the people he interviewed I felt helpless. They wanted the same things we do, the freedom to do and think the way they wanted, security, family, safety, and books. The right to read what they wanted. A country that was free, it was that for which they were fighting and dying.
It is hard to read this book and not identify with them, to not feel that our country should have been more help. The value of books and what they provide is stressed again and again. It is a common denominator. The book follows these people even when they are forced to leave their homes, their town and also the fate of the secret library. The amazing thing is that these people never gave up hope, a hope that books kept alive.
"i think books are like rain. Wherever rain falls things grow. So hopefully wherever our books land, the person who reads them will gain knowledge, and his or her mind will grow. This in turn will help humanity grow."
ARC from Netgalley.
November 30, 2019
Daraya is one of the many communities devastated by Syria’s long civil war. Considered a rebel stronghold, it was put under siege by government forces and relentlessly bombed. With no food, no medicines, no safe shelter, no reliable electricity, every day was a struggle for survival as civilians dodged sniper bullets, scavenged for the next meal and hid from falling bombs. It was in this environment that several young people, convinced of the power of ideas to sustain and rebuild a nation, began to collect books from bombed out and abandoned buildings. At great risk, they ferried these books to an underground room to create a hidden library. Soon this became a cultural center. But this is not only about a library, but about many acts of hope, a hope which became the people’s greatest act of resistance. We meet a young teacher who gathers children in unlit basements without books to give them a basic education, a dental student who scavenges tools of the trade to offer what he can in the way of dental care, a graffiti artist who risks his life to paint murals on destroyed buildings that depict hope, and many people who read in trenches, in their grief and fear, to remind themselves that anger and terror and hopelessness can never have the final word. Although the writing was far from outstanding, this is a story that should be read by everyone.
May 3, 2019
"I would have told them that the soul needs books just like the body needs food"
This book has one constant message throughout and that is...hope.
Amongst war, hunger, loss and pain, a brighter future can be salvaged and beauty is always there if you look for it.
This book illuminates the struggle in Syria, and finds the glimmer of hope and humanity that will not be put out. Members of the community in Daraya, formed a secret library. Where books can set you free.
"The books themselves help us forget all the troubles around us. When we are reading, the author takes us away to a different world. That's something we really need, it gives us peace of mind."
Not only do books offer an escape but also hope for the future. They want the young to be able to think for themselves, become educated and one day rebuild the country.
An illuminating novel about the human spirit.
***Netgalley and PublicAffairsBooks gave me an advanced copy of this novel for my honest review.
This book has one constant message throughout and that is...hope.
Amongst war, hunger, loss and pain, a brighter future can be salvaged and beauty is always there if you look for it.
This book illuminates the struggle in Syria, and finds the glimmer of hope and humanity that will not be put out. Members of the community in Daraya, formed a secret library. Where books can set you free.
"The books themselves help us forget all the troubles around us. When we are reading, the author takes us away to a different world. That's something we really need, it gives us peace of mind."
Not only do books offer an escape but also hope for the future. They want the young to be able to think for themselves, become educated and one day rebuild the country.
An illuminating novel about the human spirit.
***Netgalley and PublicAffairsBooks gave me an advanced copy of this novel for my honest review.
April 28, 2019
Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley
Ursula K Le Guin tells the story of a place whose happiness depends on one child being miserable in “The One Who Walks Away from Omelas” and the reactions to those when they discover it. In part, our ability to exist in the world is on our ability to disregard or ignore horrors, but sometimes we refuse that happiness, refuse to bow to the horrors. In many ways, Thomson’s book makes me think of that story as well as how much we take for granted. If you teach, then you know that tare a great many students who do not read for pleasure (shot, just ask how many people have read LOTR or GoT instead of just watching), yet this book is partly about the human spirit and partly about why books are important.
Thomson chronicles the story of a group of people who start a library in Daraya, a town close to Damascus. According to Thomson, the town has always had a proud history of peaceful protest, and therefore, caught up in the Civil War. Some of the town’s population flees, others stay. Some of those who stay realize the fighting is simply more than picking up a gun, but also the transmission of knowledge – their fight style includes the founding of schools and a library. In part, the library comes from a desire to save books that were bombed out homes. The lengths that the men, it seems it was largely men who gathered the books, went to collect items – books furniture- and the sheer fairness in which they kept records about where the items came from.
In part, Thomson also chronicle show these men, and later women, not only use the library but also try to continue as much as a normal life as they possibly can. The library, it seems, becomes both a cause and a symbol – not only of what was, of what we should be, of how we learn, but also of what the revolution is fighting for as well as the difference in sides.
We know from history that the quickest way to destroy a people is to destroy a culture. Destroy the books, the art, and so on. Culture can mean a people but it also can be a city. The library in Daraya was part of this - a desire to preserve the need for knowledge, the thirst for reading that many people never develop at least where access to a library is easy.
While I would have loved a bit more description of what books made up the library, Thomson does mention quite a few works, in particular the favorite works of the people who frequented the library. The list includes some that are unfamiliar to Western readers. In many ways, this insures that Thomson’s reporting serves another important function of a library – as a bridge between peoples.
Ursula K Le Guin tells the story of a place whose happiness depends on one child being miserable in “The One Who Walks Away from Omelas” and the reactions to those when they discover it. In part, our ability to exist in the world is on our ability to disregard or ignore horrors, but sometimes we refuse that happiness, refuse to bow to the horrors. In many ways, Thomson’s book makes me think of that story as well as how much we take for granted. If you teach, then you know that tare a great many students who do not read for pleasure (shot, just ask how many people have read LOTR or GoT instead of just watching), yet this book is partly about the human spirit and partly about why books are important.
Thomson chronicles the story of a group of people who start a library in Daraya, a town close to Damascus. According to Thomson, the town has always had a proud history of peaceful protest, and therefore, caught up in the Civil War. Some of the town’s population flees, others stay. Some of those who stay realize the fighting is simply more than picking up a gun, but also the transmission of knowledge – their fight style includes the founding of schools and a library. In part, the library comes from a desire to save books that were bombed out homes. The lengths that the men, it seems it was largely men who gathered the books, went to collect items – books furniture- and the sheer fairness in which they kept records about where the items came from.
In part, Thomson also chronicle show these men, and later women, not only use the library but also try to continue as much as a normal life as they possibly can. The library, it seems, becomes both a cause and a symbol – not only of what was, of what we should be, of how we learn, but also of what the revolution is fighting for as well as the difference in sides.
We know from history that the quickest way to destroy a people is to destroy a culture. Destroy the books, the art, and so on. Culture can mean a people but it also can be a city. The library in Daraya was part of this - a desire to preserve the need for knowledge, the thirst for reading that many people never develop at least where access to a library is easy.
While I would have loved a bit more description of what books made up the library, Thomson does mention quite a few works, in particular the favorite works of the people who frequented the library. The list includes some that are unfamiliar to Western readers. In many ways, this insures that Thomson’s reporting serves another important function of a library – as a bridge between peoples.
January 24, 2021
Mike Thomson we wszystkim zachowuje umiar, nie rozbudowuje przesadnie chwytającej za serce opowieści o miłości do literatury, nie przesadza z zagłębianiem się w polityczne i historyczne niuanse, ani też nie epatuje sobą i własnym zaangażowaniem. Dzięki umiarowi i równowadze wyszła książka, która niesie ze sobą zarówno humanistyczne przesłanie i jest opowieścią o niezwykłych ludziach.
Osiemdziesięciotysięczne miasto Darajja w Syrii było jednym z pierwszych, które w 2011 roku ogarnęły protesty przeciwko reżimowi al-Assada. Początkowo pokojowe manifestacje wobec militarnej agresji policji i wojska zmieniły się w wewnętrzny konflikt, który po kilku latach przekształcił się w kampanię przeciwko Państwu Islamskiemu. 24 sierpnia 2012 wojska rządowe dokonały w Darajji i na przedmieściach pobliskiego Damaszku rzezi cywilów, a miasto uznano za symbol i centrum oporu wobec zbrodniczej władzy. Oblężeni mieszkańcy nie mieli dostępu do pitnej wody, jedzenia, mieli za to książki. I - jak mówi jeden z bohaterów reportażu - choć nie nakarmisz nimi ciała, nakarmisz duszę. O ludziach, którzy narażając życie szukali strawy dla duszy, ale nie tylko, pisze Mike Thomson w “Bibliotece w oblężonym mieście”.
CAŁOŚĆ TUTAJ - https://www.empik.com/empikultura/ksi...
Osiemdziesięciotysięczne miasto Darajja w Syrii było jednym z pierwszych, które w 2011 roku ogarnęły protesty przeciwko reżimowi al-Assada. Początkowo pokojowe manifestacje wobec militarnej agresji policji i wojska zmieniły się w wewnętrzny konflikt, który po kilku latach przekształcił się w kampanię przeciwko Państwu Islamskiemu. 24 sierpnia 2012 wojska rządowe dokonały w Darajji i na przedmieściach pobliskiego Damaszku rzezi cywilów, a miasto uznano za symbol i centrum oporu wobec zbrodniczej władzy. Oblężeni mieszkańcy nie mieli dostępu do pitnej wody, jedzenia, mieli za to książki. I - jak mówi jeden z bohaterów reportażu - choć nie nakarmisz nimi ciała, nakarmisz duszę. O ludziach, którzy narażając życie szukali strawy dla duszy, ale nie tylko, pisze Mike Thomson w “Bibliotece w oblężonym mieście”.
CAŁOŚĆ TUTAJ - https://www.empik.com/empikultura/ksi...
May 10, 2022
Daraya, Syria.
Even during civil war, people worry about life after war.
* Parents, teachers, young people worried that education was being neglected.
* University students worried that they would not be able to pick up their studies again at this or another university.
In a place were libraries--public and private--have long been respected, young men of the Daraya Youth Group--knew the importance of a library. Knew that libraries teach the wisdom of the elders, all kinds of wisdom. If Syria would be a strong country, if the city Daraya would withstand attack, then new ways and better ways would have to be found. And always spiritual wisdom provided a solid basis for understanding the best ways of understanding their world.
Abdul Basit, student turned general hospital worker, said:
Personal Note.
When my son of the USA came back from his first visit from the Second Iraq War, he told me that he was proud to be a military warrior so that he could protect me as a spiritual warrior, so I could keep doing what I do. He did a fine job. I still am the spiritual warrior he protected.
Even during civil war, people worry about life after war.
* Parents, teachers, young people worried that education was being neglected.
* University students worried that they would not be able to pick up their studies again at this or another university.
In a place were libraries--public and private--have long been respected, young men of the Daraya Youth Group--knew the importance of a library. Knew that libraries teach the wisdom of the elders, all kinds of wisdom. If Syria would be a strong country, if the city Daraya would withstand attack, then new ways and better ways would have to be found. And always spiritual wisdom provided a solid basis for understanding the best ways of understanding their world.
Abdul Basit, student turned general hospital worker, said:
Principles are planted in a library, and they grow into ideas. . . [A library] is a factory for thoughts and solutions. So in order for us to be educated and more aware, we had to have a library. Libraries are the fuel of life.
Personal Note.
When my son of the USA came back from his first visit from the Second Iraq War, he told me that he was proud to be a military warrior so that he could protect me as a spiritual warrior, so I could keep doing what I do. He did a fine job. I still am the spiritual warrior he protected.
February 4, 2020
This is such a harrowing read, it shows the worst and best of humanity. The worst being Bashar al-Assad the psychopath in charge of Syria as he rampages across a country full of culture and history, torturing and murdering those who disagree with him and his beliefs. The worst is also the rest of the world sat idly by saying things along the lines of don't you cross that red line, so Assad does and there is zero response. It is also the media, not keeping focus on an event like this, keeping it in the public eye is the one way to guilt a response from world leaders.
The best of humanity is those who stayed behind to rebel against Assad's rule to fight for freedom of speech without the threat of prison, for the right to live their lives and get an education. You have some who aren't there to fight but are there to offer medical aid, some stay to protect their home and one even stays because he was training in dentistry and he saw all the dentists leaving for safety.
Mike Thomson starts off this book well, a little story about the unique grapes that grow only in Darayya, a beautiful place, and then that all gets torn down by what has been happening there in recent years. Mike tries to get there to report but it is deemed too dangerous for him, instead not giving up he manages to contact people still in the town so that he can tell their stories and let the world know what is happening. What he wasn't planning on was uncovering one of the most extraordinary stories to come out of a conflict zone. A group of people risking all to save books and create a secret library so that the people can still educate themselves. It becomes a sanctuary for many from the almost continuous bombardment from pro-Assad forces.
Their ability to survive, on such a small amount of food, to live under such immense stress and yet still hold out hope for a positive future blows my mind....incredible people. As soon as I finished this book I went online to see a headline that Assad is still getting warnings from other countries, this time Turkey, and yet still nothing happening.
Everybody should read this book showing just how strong the Human spirit is and once they've read it, share it.
Blog review is here> https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2020...
The best of humanity is those who stayed behind to rebel against Assad's rule to fight for freedom of speech without the threat of prison, for the right to live their lives and get an education. You have some who aren't there to fight but are there to offer medical aid, some stay to protect their home and one even stays because he was training in dentistry and he saw all the dentists leaving for safety.
Mike Thomson starts off this book well, a little story about the unique grapes that grow only in Darayya, a beautiful place, and then that all gets torn down by what has been happening there in recent years. Mike tries to get there to report but it is deemed too dangerous for him, instead not giving up he manages to contact people still in the town so that he can tell their stories and let the world know what is happening. What he wasn't planning on was uncovering one of the most extraordinary stories to come out of a conflict zone. A group of people risking all to save books and create a secret library so that the people can still educate themselves. It becomes a sanctuary for many from the almost continuous bombardment from pro-Assad forces.
Their ability to survive, on such a small amount of food, to live under such immense stress and yet still hold out hope for a positive future blows my mind....incredible people. As soon as I finished this book I went online to see a headline that Assad is still getting warnings from other countries, this time Turkey, and yet still nothing happening.
Everybody should read this book showing just how strong the Human spirit is and once they've read it, share it.
Blog review is here> https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2020...
May 13, 2019
Syria's Secret Library is an amazing story. Think about it. Being under siege for years, would you need only food and water to survive? This story is about food for the soul. The mental aspect of survival is often overlooked. I found the story engrossing and thought provoking as a different perspective about those caught in a terrible situation with no escape. The hope found here is inspiring, yet tragic. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.
May 10, 2022
Non Fiction>Syria 2010s Other topics: library, power of words/books
I read this as a BotM with the Non Fiction Book Club here on GR for May 2022.
As a book lover (which I'm guessing anyone reading this is, also), this was great. Here's the basic premise: Mike Thompson is a journalist and he takes an interest in a secret underground library collection maintained by a crew of 'rebel' Daraya residents in Syria and chronicles their thoughts about their makeshift library, the war, and life in general. There are so many quotes from the main actors about the importance of books, learning, libraries, and community that if it were a work of fiction it would sound almost like an after school special to participate in Book It! Fortunately these are real people and their real thoughts and the idea that books got them through a worse time than most humans even know to exist makes for a bittersweet story with books adding all the sweetness.
The people according to the author: "Over the following months I got to know a number of people from different walks of life in Daraya. Most were involved in creating the town’s secret library including fourteen-year-old Amjad, the self-declared Chief Librarian; Anas Habib, a dynamic, hard-working, former civil engineering student; Abdul Basit, former business and economics student, and now helping hand at the hospital; Ayham al-Sakka, a book-loving ex-dental student; Homam al-Toun, a former pharmacy student; Sara Matar, who was to become a courageously dedicated teacher, and Rateb abo Fayez, a rebel fighter who not only took his loans from the library into battle, but held a book club on the front line."
I did learn a lot about the situation in Syria as it's not something I knew a lot of details about. The human story is definitely compelling and heartbreaking. I also enjoyed the initial short history of Syria.
I'm going to share a lot of the quotes I highlighted while reading below.
"As Abdul Basit and his friends began to appreciate the quality and quantity of the treasure they were amassing, they were inspired by a new idea. Rather than just store these rescued books, why not let people read them?"
"We believe that building this library is very important, not just for our minds but also for our souls. We are convinced that knowledge rarely comes when you sit doing nothing. It usually follows hard work and sometimes taking great risks."
"Just as the library was about much more than just passing the time reading books, so Abu Malik’s paintings were not merely decorative. Both were forms of thoughtful resistance, aimed at raising awareness about what was happening in Daraya, while also encouraging people not to lose hope."
"Rateb revealed that, after the initial book club discussion, there would often be a presentation–by which he did not mean somebody just pulling out some scribbled notes, but a well-planned talk often involving the use of a slide projector."
"‘Ignorance is always the enemy of humanity,’ he said, passionately. ‘The worst enemy facing a man is someone who knows nothing of what he speaks. When they had said that they didn’t like what was happening in the library they actually had no idea what was going on there.’"
"One of the many attractions of the secret library was that reading books helped people forget about their hunger, as well as the war going on above their heads."
"Peace takes research, planning and reconstruction, the secrets to which can be found in books."
"Slowly, Abdul Basit reiterated that, in his view, no society could rebuild itself or truly grow without first being educated. For that, he insisted, you needed books and you needed a library: ‘Principles are planted in a library, and they grow into ideas,’ he told me. ‘It is a factory for thoughts and solutions. So in order for us to be educated and be more aware, we had to have a library. Libraries are the fuel of life.’"
"I think books are like rain. Wherever rain falls things grow. So hopefully wherever our books land, the person who reads them will gain knowledge, and his or her mind will grow. This in turn will help humanity grow."
"I read so many books there and spent so much of my time in that wonderful, quiet and friendly place."
"We had learned the enormous value of reading after creating our secret library in Daraya. The way it helped build openness among us all, and filled the gaps in our knowledge which had widened during the siege. We saw how it had also brought benefits to the wider community, too. So we thought, let’s try and help local children and youths by creating a library here."
"So, Malik told me, the solution was obvious. If they could not get to the library, the library would come to them."
"Maybe the books in it will help young people here retain their hopes and dreams for the future, just like our secret library did for us in Daraya."
"We believe libraries are as important as food and water, so we’re determined to start one, even if it’s only very small."
"As I remember saying to you back in Daraya, just like the body needs food the soul needs books."
"We had a place of sanctuary, an oasis of calm and harmony in what seemed like a world gone mad. It’s not only the books I miss, it’s the place I read them in. I also miss the environment of the library, the people there, I miss everything about that special place. It wasn’t just a repository of books. It was another world, a world we shared together. And while outside was destruction and pain, inside was creation and hope. Despite all that was happening, I felt inspired inside those walls."
"Brains rather than bullets are going to be needed to put this devastated country back together again."
"Books, he had insisted, whether on the subject of literature, history, politics, religion, poetry or anything else, can help show the way forward and provide the building blocks for the years to come."
"many young people are just as passionate about books as we are. One day we will go back to Daraya. We will work together to build an immense library there, one that will be the heart of the town. It was our refuge, it was where we had fun, it was where we came to enjoy the magic of books. The secret library was a glimmer of hope in a very dark world. It was our spiritual sanctuary."
"The library gave birth to a movement of knowledge and learning, and enabled us to explore new things."
"It taught us that a fighter without knowledge is not a hero, but a gangster. The library’s many books were fuel for our souls. "
" While bombs rained down from the skies, we discussed new ideas, learned from the past and planned for the future. The library united us all. It was an essential part of Daraya, and what it stood for. Looking back, the secret library was not only our saviour, it was our biggest weapon against the regime."
"To see hope triumph once more over pessimism, creation over destruction and books over bombs, would be a victory for us all."
I read this as a BotM with the Non Fiction Book Club here on GR for May 2022.
As a book lover (which I'm guessing anyone reading this is, also), this was great. Here's the basic premise: Mike Thompson is a journalist and he takes an interest in a secret underground library collection maintained by a crew of 'rebel' Daraya residents in Syria and chronicles their thoughts about their makeshift library, the war, and life in general. There are so many quotes from the main actors about the importance of books, learning, libraries, and community that if it were a work of fiction it would sound almost like an after school special to participate in Book It! Fortunately these are real people and their real thoughts and the idea that books got them through a worse time than most humans even know to exist makes for a bittersweet story with books adding all the sweetness.
The people according to the author: "Over the following months I got to know a number of people from different walks of life in Daraya. Most were involved in creating the town’s secret library including fourteen-year-old Amjad, the self-declared Chief Librarian; Anas Habib, a dynamic, hard-working, former civil engineering student; Abdul Basit, former business and economics student, and now helping hand at the hospital; Ayham al-Sakka, a book-loving ex-dental student; Homam al-Toun, a former pharmacy student; Sara Matar, who was to become a courageously dedicated teacher, and Rateb abo Fayez, a rebel fighter who not only took his loans from the library into battle, but held a book club on the front line."
I did learn a lot about the situation in Syria as it's not something I knew a lot of details about. The human story is definitely compelling and heartbreaking. I also enjoyed the initial short history of Syria.
I'm going to share a lot of the quotes I highlighted while reading below.
"As Abdul Basit and his friends began to appreciate the quality and quantity of the treasure they were amassing, they were inspired by a new idea. Rather than just store these rescued books, why not let people read them?"
"We believe that building this library is very important, not just for our minds but also for our souls. We are convinced that knowledge rarely comes when you sit doing nothing. It usually follows hard work and sometimes taking great risks."
"Just as the library was about much more than just passing the time reading books, so Abu Malik’s paintings were not merely decorative. Both were forms of thoughtful resistance, aimed at raising awareness about what was happening in Daraya, while also encouraging people not to lose hope."
"Rateb revealed that, after the initial book club discussion, there would often be a presentation–by which he did not mean somebody just pulling out some scribbled notes, but a well-planned talk often involving the use of a slide projector."
"‘Ignorance is always the enemy of humanity,’ he said, passionately. ‘The worst enemy facing a man is someone who knows nothing of what he speaks. When they had said that they didn’t like what was happening in the library they actually had no idea what was going on there.’"
"One of the many attractions of the secret library was that reading books helped people forget about their hunger, as well as the war going on above their heads."
"Peace takes research, planning and reconstruction, the secrets to which can be found in books."
"Slowly, Abdul Basit reiterated that, in his view, no society could rebuild itself or truly grow without first being educated. For that, he insisted, you needed books and you needed a library: ‘Principles are planted in a library, and they grow into ideas,’ he told me. ‘It is a factory for thoughts and solutions. So in order for us to be educated and be more aware, we had to have a library. Libraries are the fuel of life.’"
"I think books are like rain. Wherever rain falls things grow. So hopefully wherever our books land, the person who reads them will gain knowledge, and his or her mind will grow. This in turn will help humanity grow."
"I read so many books there and spent so much of my time in that wonderful, quiet and friendly place."
"We had learned the enormous value of reading after creating our secret library in Daraya. The way it helped build openness among us all, and filled the gaps in our knowledge which had widened during the siege. We saw how it had also brought benefits to the wider community, too. So we thought, let’s try and help local children and youths by creating a library here."
"So, Malik told me, the solution was obvious. If they could not get to the library, the library would come to them."
"Maybe the books in it will help young people here retain their hopes and dreams for the future, just like our secret library did for us in Daraya."
"We believe libraries are as important as food and water, so we’re determined to start one, even if it’s only very small."
"As I remember saying to you back in Daraya, just like the body needs food the soul needs books."
"We had a place of sanctuary, an oasis of calm and harmony in what seemed like a world gone mad. It’s not only the books I miss, it’s the place I read them in. I also miss the environment of the library, the people there, I miss everything about that special place. It wasn’t just a repository of books. It was another world, a world we shared together. And while outside was destruction and pain, inside was creation and hope. Despite all that was happening, I felt inspired inside those walls."
"Brains rather than bullets are going to be needed to put this devastated country back together again."
"Books, he had insisted, whether on the subject of literature, history, politics, religion, poetry or anything else, can help show the way forward and provide the building blocks for the years to come."
"many young people are just as passionate about books as we are. One day we will go back to Daraya. We will work together to build an immense library there, one that will be the heart of the town. It was our refuge, it was where we had fun, it was where we came to enjoy the magic of books. The secret library was a glimmer of hope in a very dark world. It was our spiritual sanctuary."
"The library gave birth to a movement of knowledge and learning, and enabled us to explore new things."
"It taught us that a fighter without knowledge is not a hero, but a gangster. The library’s many books were fuel for our souls. "
" While bombs rained down from the skies, we discussed new ideas, learned from the past and planned for the future. The library united us all. It was an essential part of Daraya, and what it stood for. Looking back, the secret library was not only our saviour, it was our biggest weapon against the regime."
"To see hope triumph once more over pessimism, creation over destruction and books over bombs, would be a victory for us all."
June 18, 2019
A fascinating and frustrating book, telling the story of a Syrian town of books and resistance which entered the civil war by creating their own library. It would seem like the perfect story for a BBC journalist to tell, and the journalist has done his best, maintaining genuine friendships with the people of Daraya that he never betrayed. It is an incredible read, a portrait of a part of the world where the suffering and struggle are tremendous. I devoured it in a single sitting. Yet part of the story seems to be hidden under the cracks.
The author emphasizes the difference between nonviolent and violent resistance, offering many nonviolent protesters who became victims of Assad’s army, and the opinions of his interviewees about the meaning of resistance — some of them take an objectively heroic line about the need to preserve nonviolence in the face of brutality. One gets the impression at the outset that the author is concerned with the choices people in the city make, and why the city survives, resists, and builds its secret library.
But later, the author becomes insistent on the presence of “moderate rebels” in Syria, who fight and kill Russians and Alawites in the name of moderateness. And here is the perplexing thing. We hear fascinating stories from the people of Daraya about why they value books, history, knowledge, and domestic and foreign literature. They name authors as diverse as Shaw, Mill, Shakespeare, Coehlo, and Agatha Christie. But what about the ideology and faith of the citizens? The author remarks that the people seem very religious to him. What about the passion that made their town one of the toughest and longest holdouts against Assad, eliciting awe from the toughest al-Nusra fighters?
When it comes to their favorite authors, the first mentioned by the library’s patrons are the liberal Muslim mystic Mohammad Abdallah Draz and the pan-Islamist Nadim al-Jisr, as well as the cleric Ali al-Tantawi and the journalist Ahmed Mansour, author of “Jewish influence in the United States government” and “America’s defeat in Iraq.” They told the author they were enjoying the (moderate?) pan-Islamists Muhammad Imara and Mustafa al-Siba'i, but at the same time praised the poet Adonis, who is resolutely anti-Islamist, as well as the blasphemous secular novelist Aziz Nesin (translator of The Satanic Verses into Turkish).
How did these dissonant voices echo off each other in the walls of the secret library, as bombs fell around it? It would seem like a lively ideological world for the author to explore, full of passionate discussions. One of the librarians describes crying and hugging the books when it is finally abandoned during the fall of Daraya. Among the few titles he picked to save as he fled was a small book on the meaning of prayer. There can be no deception: the library is real, the deadly struggle to maintain it is real, and surely the creation, preservation and protection of this lively hall of dissonant voices was something the Muslims of Daraya felt was demanded by their faith. Unable to read Arabic, the author does his best with what translations are available, skimming the surface of fierce debate.
Yet instead of helping him along, the people of Daraya plunge their reality into a fog when they speak to the Englishman from the BBC. They deny so passionately that there are any jihadists among them that the author feels convinced that they must not have heard of the rise of al-Nusra, even in 2016! Yet simultaneously, Assad’s army begins to bomb Daraya, asserting that the most vicious breed of al-Nusra fighters are living there. It seems highly unlikely that anyone who used the library was al-Nusra, but could the readers really have been unaware? Was the ideology behind al-Nusra’s fierce resistance to be found in their library? If it was, they did not remark on it. Perhaps it was not—after all, violence does not necessarily need theoretical justification. And it is clear that the world the Daravans died to save was their world of their own hometown and their secret library, not the world of al-Nusra or anyone else. “Our secret library was not just a nice place to read books,” says one of the rebels, “it was a crucial part of our revolution.”
As in Yemen, the people of Syria were treated with ruthless cruelty by a better armed regime that sought to crush their bodies and spriits. When you read the tales of starvation and violence in this book, in a town where orphans go hungry and feed their rations to their siblings as their friends die around them, you understand it is no wonder that people turned to violence to oppose Assad. But unlike Yemen, Syria became a fractal of ideologies and neighborhood militias. Daraya is one tiny part of this fractal, with its unique feeling of intellectual solidarity. What were they really fighting for, and why were they willing to die? It is unlikely that the sectarian jihadist narratives of the future will tell the true story of Daraya. Yet this book, composed over a severe language barrier from Facebook conversations and Skype interviews, cannot tell it perfectly either. There was a painful, real bond of blood created within the fractal. It perhaps meant different things to everyone and perhaps it still does. I hope, for the sake of the people of Daraya and for all other Syrians, that this book is translated into Arabic and continues to build the unfinished conversation being carried out in that tongue.
[I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley, but the choice to post this review was mine.]
The author emphasizes the difference between nonviolent and violent resistance, offering many nonviolent protesters who became victims of Assad’s army, and the opinions of his interviewees about the meaning of resistance — some of them take an objectively heroic line about the need to preserve nonviolence in the face of brutality. One gets the impression at the outset that the author is concerned with the choices people in the city make, and why the city survives, resists, and builds its secret library.
But later, the author becomes insistent on the presence of “moderate rebels” in Syria, who fight and kill Russians and Alawites in the name of moderateness. And here is the perplexing thing. We hear fascinating stories from the people of Daraya about why they value books, history, knowledge, and domestic and foreign literature. They name authors as diverse as Shaw, Mill, Shakespeare, Coehlo, and Agatha Christie. But what about the ideology and faith of the citizens? The author remarks that the people seem very religious to him. What about the passion that made their town one of the toughest and longest holdouts against Assad, eliciting awe from the toughest al-Nusra fighters?
When it comes to their favorite authors, the first mentioned by the library’s patrons are the liberal Muslim mystic Mohammad Abdallah Draz and the pan-Islamist Nadim al-Jisr, as well as the cleric Ali al-Tantawi and the journalist Ahmed Mansour, author of “Jewish influence in the United States government” and “America’s defeat in Iraq.” They told the author they were enjoying the (moderate?) pan-Islamists Muhammad Imara and Mustafa al-Siba'i, but at the same time praised the poet Adonis, who is resolutely anti-Islamist, as well as the blasphemous secular novelist Aziz Nesin (translator of The Satanic Verses into Turkish).
How did these dissonant voices echo off each other in the walls of the secret library, as bombs fell around it? It would seem like a lively ideological world for the author to explore, full of passionate discussions. One of the librarians describes crying and hugging the books when it is finally abandoned during the fall of Daraya. Among the few titles he picked to save as he fled was a small book on the meaning of prayer. There can be no deception: the library is real, the deadly struggle to maintain it is real, and surely the creation, preservation and protection of this lively hall of dissonant voices was something the Muslims of Daraya felt was demanded by their faith. Unable to read Arabic, the author does his best with what translations are available, skimming the surface of fierce debate.
Yet instead of helping him along, the people of Daraya plunge their reality into a fog when they speak to the Englishman from the BBC. They deny so passionately that there are any jihadists among them that the author feels convinced that they must not have heard of the rise of al-Nusra, even in 2016! Yet simultaneously, Assad’s army begins to bomb Daraya, asserting that the most vicious breed of al-Nusra fighters are living there. It seems highly unlikely that anyone who used the library was al-Nusra, but could the readers really have been unaware? Was the ideology behind al-Nusra’s fierce resistance to be found in their library? If it was, they did not remark on it. Perhaps it was not—after all, violence does not necessarily need theoretical justification. And it is clear that the world the Daravans died to save was their world of their own hometown and their secret library, not the world of al-Nusra or anyone else. “Our secret library was not just a nice place to read books,” says one of the rebels, “it was a crucial part of our revolution.”
As in Yemen, the people of Syria were treated with ruthless cruelty by a better armed regime that sought to crush their bodies and spriits. When you read the tales of starvation and violence in this book, in a town where orphans go hungry and feed their rations to their siblings as their friends die around them, you understand it is no wonder that people turned to violence to oppose Assad. But unlike Yemen, Syria became a fractal of ideologies and neighborhood militias. Daraya is one tiny part of this fractal, with its unique feeling of intellectual solidarity. What were they really fighting for, and why were they willing to die? It is unlikely that the sectarian jihadist narratives of the future will tell the true story of Daraya. Yet this book, composed over a severe language barrier from Facebook conversations and Skype interviews, cannot tell it perfectly either. There was a painful, real bond of blood created within the fractal. It perhaps meant different things to everyone and perhaps it still does. I hope, for the sake of the people of Daraya and for all other Syrians, that this book is translated into Arabic and continues to build the unfinished conversation being carried out in that tongue.
[I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley, but the choice to post this review was mine.]
July 5, 2020
This is an incredibly inspiring story of the creation of a small, makeshift library in the Syrian town of Darayya during an inhumane 4-year siege. The besieged and starving people would rescue books from damaged, bombed-out buildings and dodge the sniper bullets and bombs to take them to a basement cellar library. What is it that drives people to risk life and limb for books? Well, there is something profoundly moving about the hunger for sanctuary from brutality, the unstoppable commitment to freedom, and learning despite the dangers, which in most cases would be the kind of inspiring story we all need. Well, the story is inspiring. Its telling, however, was so clumsy, so pedestrian, that the booked failed in a big way, for me.
I kept wondering why I was failing to be uplifted as I went through these pages. Why was I so bored?
Mike Thomson is a journalist and although there are many exceptions, sometimes the journalist can not sustain a book-length story. David Grann, john Carreyrou, Ronan Farrow, and many others prove this assertion wrong but then we come across Mike Thomson. It was hard to engage with his writing in this book. He is 'reporting' from a distance, as was necessary, given the circumstances. He has not met the people in this story in person, so we never really get a more than one-dimensional view. The cast of characters is large, so reading about people without a depth of character development, makes for disconnected and tedious reading. And then, he inserts himself and his reactions that were jarring and irrelevant.
"I was delighted to hear this story. I knew that Abdul Basit and his literary friends were all religious, and I feared that there generally very tolerant attitude to life might not extend to this issue."
Yawn. I honestly couldn't care less about Mr. Thomson's "delight". How does this forward the truly extraordinary story? Ugh. This kind of writing is puerile and lazy, in my view, and bogged this book down until I just could hardly bring myself to pick it up again to finish.
This is a true example of how much a story depends on the hands of the storyteller. Imagine The Odyssey told by Ivanka Trump or Ernie from Sesame Street or Vladimir Putin. Three different stories.
Unfortunately, this extraordinary story of a people's resilience and determination was, in my view, mishandled and undermined by Mike Thomson. That such a story occurred as underwhelming is at the very least, a missed opportunity.
A disappointing read.
I kept wondering why I was failing to be uplifted as I went through these pages. Why was I so bored?
Mike Thomson is a journalist and although there are many exceptions, sometimes the journalist can not sustain a book-length story. David Grann, john Carreyrou, Ronan Farrow, and many others prove this assertion wrong but then we come across Mike Thomson. It was hard to engage with his writing in this book. He is 'reporting' from a distance, as was necessary, given the circumstances. He has not met the people in this story in person, so we never really get a more than one-dimensional view. The cast of characters is large, so reading about people without a depth of character development, makes for disconnected and tedious reading. And then, he inserts himself and his reactions that were jarring and irrelevant.
"I was delighted to hear this story. I knew that Abdul Basit and his literary friends were all religious, and I feared that there generally very tolerant attitude to life might not extend to this issue."
Yawn. I honestly couldn't care less about Mr. Thomson's "delight". How does this forward the truly extraordinary story? Ugh. This kind of writing is puerile and lazy, in my view, and bogged this book down until I just could hardly bring myself to pick it up again to finish.
This is a true example of how much a story depends on the hands of the storyteller. Imagine The Odyssey told by Ivanka Trump or Ernie from Sesame Street or Vladimir Putin. Three different stories.
Unfortunately, this extraordinary story of a people's resilience and determination was, in my view, mishandled and undermined by Mike Thomson. That such a story occurred as underwhelming is at the very least, a missed opportunity.
A disappointing read.
September 17, 2019
What should have been a very interesting and inspiring story turned out to be just OK. By the end of the Introduction, I knew the basic facts. In war-torn Daraya, Syria, a group of young people had gathered books from abandoned and virtually destroyed homes, as well as from people still living in the city, and created a secret library in the basement of a bombed-out building. The library served as a center of learning and a refuge from the horrors of war.
The author introduced many characters whom he claimed he had gotten to know well, although all of his communication with them had been via text, email, phone, Skype, etc. He never met any of them in person, and perhaps that why he was unable to bring his characters to life in his book. His narrative was poorly organized, and added very little to the basic facts stated in his introduction.
The author introduced many characters whom he claimed he had gotten to know well, although all of his communication with them had been via text, email, phone, Skype, etc. He never met any of them in person, and perhaps that why he was unable to bring his characters to life in his book. His narrative was poorly organized, and added very little to the basic facts stated in his introduction.
August 8, 2019
For anyone who has ever thought that libraries were unnecessary places. Please read this.
For anyone who has always found friendship and solace in the pages of books. Please read this.
This is such an important book, these people's stories were beautifully written and need to be heard.
I implore everyone who has ever had a love of books to read this.
"It gave us precious space where we could breathe hope instead of despair. It liberated us from suffering and savagery. Inside its walls the love of science, literature and ideas filled the air. This symphony of books soothed our hearts. As we entered, its aura revived us, like fresh air to a suffocating man. It was the oxygen for our souls. It was a place where angels met. Each time I stepped inside, I flew with them."
For anyone who has always found friendship and solace in the pages of books. Please read this.
This is such an important book, these people's stories were beautifully written and need to be heard.
I implore everyone who has ever had a love of books to read this.
"It gave us precious space where we could breathe hope instead of despair. It liberated us from suffering and savagery. Inside its walls the love of science, literature and ideas filled the air. This symphony of books soothed our hearts. As we entered, its aura revived us, like fresh air to a suffocating man. It was the oxygen for our souls. It was a place where angels met. Each time I stepped inside, I flew with them."
September 27, 2019
A story of incredible resilience in the face of wartime suffering, told in the most boring way possible. The chief problem with the author’s storytelling is that he constantly inserts himself into it—how he got the interview, how worried he was, how guilty he felt. The effect is to distance the reader from the individuals who are actually enduring the hardships. It’s the difference between “people struggling to maintain civilization while under a brutal siege” and “here are some things I learned through my diligent efforts about people living under siege.”
February 13, 2020
يوثق مايك ثومسون بالكتاب قصة مكتبة داريا السرية أثناء حصارها. قصة داريا وحصارها ومكتبتها هي من القصص التي يحق لنا كسوريين أن نفتخر بها كل حياتنا، داريا بالآلاف القليلة من الناس المحاصرة فيها استطاعت أن تقوم بأول انتخابات عامة حرة بسوريا من أكثر من خمسين سنة، وأن تبني أول بنية حقيقة لدولة فيها المقاتلين موحدين ومجرد تابع عسكري للحكم المدني المنتخب كل ست أشهر، العوامل التي جعلت داريا تصمد طويلا رغم كل الظلم والقهر وانعدام أبسط مقومات الحياة
May 30, 2020
It gave us a precious space where we could breathe hope instead of despair. It liberated us from suffering and savagery. Inside its walls the love of science, literature, and ideas filled the air. This symphony of books soothed our hearts.
What a story. It wasn't easy for me to read. I paused several times to let the tears flow and walk away. My husband asked why was I reading it because it only made me depressed and sad each time I picked it up. I told him I owe it to these brave people to read their story, even though it's a painful one.
Mike Thomson accounts the events and subsequent seize of Daraya from 2011-2016 through the narratives of the people living there, especially those responsible for building the secret library in a basement of a heavily shelled building. These young college age men risked life and limb to locate books in heavily bombed buildings to rescue them so they could be read by the people living in Daraya, besieged by Assad regime forces. Food and medical supplies dwindling, to the point the people lived on one bowl of watery broth a day, many found hope in reading. Hoped for Western aid and intervention wasn't coming. Young teachers still tried to teach school. The FSA fighters assisted in helping them find books, some even attending lectures and learning to read themselves at the library. The chief librarian was a 14 year old boy who was found hiding from shelling in the streets and was told to come to the library, it's far safer there. He asked to stay and did. This is a story of survival, the importance of books, and honestly, the strength of the human spirit. It sounds so cliche to write that. But these people were unbroken. Faced with hunger, limited access to medical supplies, water and electricity cut offs by their attackers, Wifi communication done by a wire/pan set up, they still persevered. I was infinitely chastised and humbled reading this and reflecting on my own (quite petty/small) irritations I face in daily living. I get to go to a grocery store. And I don't have to dodge sniper fire to get there. So many things I take for granted.
This book was eye opening for me in the fact it showed me how much I don't know in terms of global issues. As each year went by in the book, while these people were fighting for their lives and reading in limited light, I could think about the privileges I was enjoying. It was sobering. It makes me angry. It makes me so deeply saddened. I recommend this book. It's not an easy read. But it's a worthwhile one.
I'll leave you with this quote from Anas, one of the men who risked so much in collecting books for the libraries. Mike asked him did he not think in "a town whose inhabitants were virtually starving, did some not think that these young, dynamic men should be putting their energies into collecting food instead?" His response:
'Mike, I haven't come across anyone who has said that', he told me. 'And had they done so, I would have told them that just like the body needs food, the soul needs books'.
What a story. It wasn't easy for me to read. I paused several times to let the tears flow and walk away. My husband asked why was I reading it because it only made me depressed and sad each time I picked it up. I told him I owe it to these brave people to read their story, even though it's a painful one.
Mike Thomson accounts the events and subsequent seize of Daraya from 2011-2016 through the narratives of the people living there, especially those responsible for building the secret library in a basement of a heavily shelled building. These young college age men risked life and limb to locate books in heavily bombed buildings to rescue them so they could be read by the people living in Daraya, besieged by Assad regime forces. Food and medical supplies dwindling, to the point the people lived on one bowl of watery broth a day, many found hope in reading. Hoped for Western aid and intervention wasn't coming. Young teachers still tried to teach school. The FSA fighters assisted in helping them find books, some even attending lectures and learning to read themselves at the library. The chief librarian was a 14 year old boy who was found hiding from shelling in the streets and was told to come to the library, it's far safer there. He asked to stay and did. This is a story of survival, the importance of books, and honestly, the strength of the human spirit. It sounds so cliche to write that. But these people were unbroken. Faced with hunger, limited access to medical supplies, water and electricity cut offs by their attackers, Wifi communication done by a wire/pan set up, they still persevered. I was infinitely chastised and humbled reading this and reflecting on my own (quite petty/small) irritations I face in daily living. I get to go to a grocery store. And I don't have to dodge sniper fire to get there. So many things I take for granted.
This book was eye opening for me in the fact it showed me how much I don't know in terms of global issues. As each year went by in the book, while these people were fighting for their lives and reading in limited light, I could think about the privileges I was enjoying. It was sobering. It makes me angry. It makes me so deeply saddened. I recommend this book. It's not an easy read. But it's a worthwhile one.
I'll leave you with this quote from Anas, one of the men who risked so much in collecting books for the libraries. Mike asked him did he not think in "a town whose inhabitants were virtually starving, did some not think that these young, dynamic men should be putting their energies into collecting food instead?" His response:
'Mike, I haven't come across anyone who has said that', he told me. 'And had they done so, I would have told them that just like the body needs food, the soul needs books'.
December 29, 2019
I hate to rate this book as low as I am, but I just feel as though this story deserved better. The story itself of the habitants of Daraya and their secret library is beyond compelling; reading of their continued hope alongside their struggles of a horrific magnitude brought me close to tears many times. However, the writing style of this book is very dry and lends very little to the emotion of its contents. The writer, many times throughout the book, was very repetitive. He would say basically the same thing over and over. In the beginning, I didn't notice this so much, and I was able to appreciate the book for the most part. But as it went on, it became increasingly apparent that the writer was borrowing from the same idea every couple of paragraphs. I understand that a book such as this one requires a theme or a guiding idea, but this was just too much. There was much more showing than telling, and I felt that the author offered comments far below the standard that this story deserved. I felt that we never really got to know any of the people discussed super personally because the author kept switching who he was talking about. He would talk about one person for a couple of paragraphs, offer a comment only vaguely related about another person, and then return to talking about the original person but regarding a completely different topic. This style of writing was jarring to me as a reader, and I could not appreciate the book so much as I kept reading. I love this book for all of the information and insight it offered into the crisis in Syria, something that I knew very little about before. It angers me that so little had been done to help these people who were very clearly suffering. I can only wish that one day their story will be narrated in a way that is much more deserving of their merits. I would recommend this book highly to anyone wanting to know more about the crisis in Syria, but do note that it can be a very dry novel that drags on at several times.
April 22, 2019
(Note: I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley)
"Syria's Secret Library" tells the incredible true story of those who managed to improvise a library for a beleaguered community. Through the focal point of this underground oasis of books, readers are given an incredibly intimate look into what daily life during the siege of the Damascus suburb of Darayya, an experience similar to countless others across Syria in the midst of its devastating civil war. But more than anything, "Syria's Secret Library" shows just how far people will go in order to ensure that they will be able to feed their souls.
"Syria's Secret Library" tells the incredible true story of those who managed to improvise a library for a beleaguered community. Through the focal point of this underground oasis of books, readers are given an incredibly intimate look into what daily life during the siege of the Damascus suburb of Darayya, an experience similar to countless others across Syria in the midst of its devastating civil war. But more than anything, "Syria's Secret Library" shows just how far people will go in order to ensure that they will be able to feed their souls.
January 4, 2020
Reading something like this makes me ashamed to not know enough of what has been happening in Syria, but totally encouraged by the role that books play in such a war torn area and the sense of hope they bring.
June 5, 2023
Inspiring, sad, uplifting….all the feels. Such a great book about a true story.
“Books motivate us to keep on going. We read how in the past everyone turned their backs on a particular nation, yet they still made it in the end. So, we can be like that too. They help us plan for life once Assad is gone. [W]e can only do that through the books we’re reading.”
Syria’s Secret Library: Reading and Redemption in a Town Under Siege by Mike Thomson
“Books motivate us to keep on going. We read how in the past everyone turned their backs on a particular nation, yet they still made it in the end. So, we can be like that too. They help us plan for life once Assad is gone. [W]e can only do that through the books we’re reading.”
Syria’s Secret Library: Reading and Redemption in a Town Under Siege by Mike Thomson
April 19, 2022
This book is full of hope during a horrible time that these people have lived through. Their optimism, hope and aspirations they hold during a war while their livelihoods are being destroyed around them is just incredible.
October 31, 2023
An excellent read that speaks to our common humanity. It was only by chance that I was reading this as the October 7 War was just underway, the struggles for freedom and security in Israel and Gaza, in Syria (still) and throughout the Middle East (really, in almost the entire world….) echoed as I read about the “secret library.” Most impressive to me as professional librarian was the commitment that the creators of this library made to be universal in their collection building while meanwhile here in the ‘land of liberty’ conservative voices want to, and have, limited access to books and information that they disagree with; believing that their values speak for everyone. The so-called “Moms for Liberty” could learn from those in Syria who, in the midst of strife, simply wanted knowledge.
Read
December 25, 2024it's very easy to say that books can change lives, but the secret library in Daraya truly exemplifies this and I'm in awe. all my love to these brave people and those whose stories have not been told yet. I hope that in the near future they will be able to build endless libraries that are no longer underground, and that they can simply exist, dream and live their lives freely.
August 2, 2020
This is a really important read for anyone that doesn't understand why we need to support and take refugees into our countries. The shit they have to go through is horrible. On the other hand it was so nice to read about how they found some hope and comfort through reading and art.
July 27, 2021
When I heard this book was coming out I just knew I had to read it. I’m so glad I did. It is one of the best, if not THE best, books I have read this year.
October 10, 2023
A good inspiring and sometime heartbreaking read.
June 6, 2020
This is one of the most remarkable stories to have come out of a war zone. A real testament to the indomitable human spirit. After a major massacre, when Daraya was besieged, bombed, & starved by the Syrian regime, its youth rescued books from rubble and built a library that kept spirits alive for four years. This is the riveting story of the library, its young librarian, its patrons, and the civil society and the resistance fighters who kept it functioning when everything else was scarce. The book is written with great empathy and attention to detail. However, the author at times slips into the unfortunate BBC cliches about 'both sides', or 'sectarian roots' etc. A must read otherwise.
October 8, 2019
Picked up the book on a whim (how could I not with that title?). I love books and libraries and with the awful destruction and violence of Syria I was very intrigued to read about a secret library and was curious to learn more about it. The library had been reported upon elsewhere so I already knew the basics: how people take books from abandoned and destroyed home and store them in a basement. A small but mighty refuge.
Unfortunately, the negative reviews are right. The author is a journalist and while that in itself is not a problem, many journalists just can't really write for a book format. The text never held my interest: too many people were introduced, and it was difficult for me to care for them as people. It might be partly because the author actually never met them in person.
It's a shame because this is absolutely an incredible work and probably provides people some comfort and normalcy in a time of war. But Thomson was not the person t deliver their story and I'd recommend skipping this one.
Library for me and if you really want to read it, would recommend this method.
Unfortunately, the negative reviews are right. The author is a journalist and while that in itself is not a problem, many journalists just can't really write for a book format. The text never held my interest: too many people were introduced, and it was difficult for me to care for them as people. It might be partly because the author actually never met them in person.
It's a shame because this is absolutely an incredible work and probably provides people some comfort and normalcy in a time of war. But Thomson was not the person t deliver their story and I'd recommend skipping this one.
Library for me and if you really want to read it, would recommend this method.
July 12, 2022
While this book had a slow start, was missing some minor links, and was very repetitive, its message could not be more powerful or hopeful. The resilience, determination, and optimism of the people of Daraya touched me so deeply; I cannot fathom all they experienced and I don’t know if I could have done the same. It was also so inspiring to connect with fellow book enthusiasts in a place so distant (geographically, ideologically, politically) from myself. It’s made me ponder how deeply I value books and knowledge, and what lengths I would be willing to go to in order to protect, defend, and sustain them.
October 19, 2020
I'm sure the truth of the secret library that was built/gathered in Daraya, Syria, is more complicated than what is covered in this book. Still, I am glad to have read it. All I can think is, where are these people now? Most of the people Mike Thomson focuses on as he tells the story of the library manage to make it out of Daraya, but this book was published in 2019. A lot has changed in northern Syria since then. Are Amjad, Abdul, Sara, and Anas still ok?
Displaying 1 - 30 of 213 reviews