Maqam

Set amongst the beginning of the 'Arab Spring' in Tunis, Mariam, a young musician, secludes herself away in order to compose the music she long desires to create.

Having recently returned home after a failed relationship with a fellow musician at a conservatory in Paris, Mariam seeks the advice from her longtime friend and mentor Heshem, who is delighted and highly impressed with Mariam's new work. A veteran of experimental music, Heshem tries to shield Mariam from the tumult taking place on the streets around her, ignited by the suicide of a young fruit seller, and keep her out of politics and to have her focus solely on her music, despite his own involvement with a democracy movement which has drawn the attention of the authorities. Meanwhile, Mariam struggles with her relationship with her sister Sarah, a free spirited, strong willed journalist who Mariam feels never supported her as much as she should have.

In this third novel of an informal quartet, begun with The Other Side of The Orange Grove and If The Full Moon Loves You, Why Worry About The Stars?, the author explores how creativity can only flourish in a free society, and Mariam's quest for creative freedom echoes the political freedom her fellow citizens now desperately seek for themselves.