Book Review: Do Not Ask the River Her Name

 [I first published this under the title “Israel-Palestine Conflict Seen Through The Eyes Of A Malayali Nurse” in YouthKiAwaaz]

A forty year old Malayali nurse working in the Middle East seems like an unlikely narrator of a book which largely focusses on the Arab-Israeli conflict and the oppression of the people of Palestine. Yet it is Ruth Albert who emerges as the soul of Sheela Tomy’s latest novel “Do Not Ask the River Her Name”.

Sheela Tomy says that the when she first thought about writing this book, she wanted to document the experience of the female migrant workers who are often ignored when we talk about the migrant experience. During the two decades she had spent in the Middle East. She’d met countless Malayali nurses who live and work in harrowing conditions so they can send money home. Born into near poverty, they give up their own dreams and aspirations so they can fund the healthcare and the education of the rest of the family. However, it was when the author met a Palestinian national and heard her story, that the scope of her novel expanded to embrace the Israel-Palestine conflict and of how Palestinians are refugees in their own land.

There are three main protagonists in the novel- Ruth Albert, Asher Menahem and Sahal Al Fadi- each of whom serves as a narrator. The three of them represent the three Abrahamic faiths, and they are all atypical in different ways.

Ruth is a Malayalee Christian who was first sent to Saudi Arabia to earn a livelihood, She narrowly escaped falling into a scam, returned to Kerala, got married, had a family, and then went to Dubai so she could earn enough to pay off for her cripped husband’s medical treatment and the education of her daughters. She nearly got caught in a human trafficking scam in Dubai, and was fortunate enough to land a job as the caregiver to a retired Jewish professor in Israel. One would presume she doesn’t have much of a life outside of her work, but she takes a deep interest in learning about the history and culture of the Holy Land, and stars in a popular v-blog where she chronicles different places of historical and religious significance to Christians. In this she is supported by the family she works for, and her narratives brings so much of the history alive for us.

Asher is an Israeli Je who’s heart beats for dispossessed. He is supported by his father who faced displacement as an Iraqi Jew, and therefore has sympathy for the Palestinians. But his mother who lost most of her family during an attack by the Hammas disapproves of his political ideology. Despite the tension at home, Asher continues to support the Palestinians who are fighting for their freedom.

Salal lost his parents in a gruesome accident when he was still a child, and was forced to become the head of the family when he was still in school. A bright student, he gives himself an education, and works hard to ensure that Palestinian get their rights. He is also an extremely talented writer and excepts from his memoirs are quoted throughout the book.

The novel straddles geographies and time zones. It jumps from the verdant landscape of Kerala to the desserts of Dubai and the snowy slopes of Switzerland. Within Israel, action shifts between Nazareth, Jerusalem and other places of historical importance. But along with that, the book goes back back-and-forth in time. Often, an incident is happening in the present at historical site, but the narration shifts to the same thing that happened centuries ago. It is almost like nothing has changed except the names of the protagonists!

The book has a large and diverse cast of characters, none of whom is what you would expect. Lily grew up in abject poverty, but is determined to snatch happiness out of everything. Leah is irreverent and combative, but she is always there when you need her. Joshua followed orders, and never expected to be penalised for doing so. But most intriguing of all is Mariam- when Ruth first encounters her, you are not sure if she is a person or a figment of Ruth’s imagination. Till the end, you are not sure; all you know is that she is always there, remembering what happened to her 2000 years back and relating it what is happening today. The city of Jerusalem features prominently in the book- a city that is sacred to all three of the Abrahamic faiths, but which is in the political control of one of them. There is even a retracing of the route taken during the stations of the cross, which is rich with symbolism and critical to the plot.

Because of the ongoing conflict in Palestine, that part of the story gains prominence, but equally important is the story of migrant workers in the Middle East. These are not educated fancy people with agency. These are poor people, who pay agents hefty sums of money to be given a chance ot work and earn abroad. Their life in the Middle East is perilous and they are forced to ignore the oppressive system so they can continue to earn money. Many often fall prey to human trafficking schemes, and each of them lives in almost inhuman conditions. However, here too, you find they find support and sympathy where they least expect it.

The book takes it’s title from a Mahmoud Darwish poem:

Don’t ask the trees for their names,
Don’t ask the valley who their mother is.
From my morehead bursts the sword of light
And from my hand springs the water of the river.
All the hears of the people are my identity
So take away my passport.

It is hard to tell who the River is. Is it the river that separates the oppressor from the oppressed? Is it the river of compassion and justice that flows through the book? Is it river that traces the journey of Ruth from Kerala to the Holy Land? Or is it the River Jordan that plays a key role in the climatic scene of the book?

“Do Not Ask the River Her Name” is an extremely difficult book to read- in fact it would not be wrong to say that you cannot read the book, you can only experience it. There are times when you wonder if what you are reading is the reality that the author is describing, or something that is the product of the imagination. The book is rich in scents too- the smell of apple blossom permeates the book, as does the smell of burning flesh. The book is told in multiple styles- straight narration, dairy entries, extracts from Salal’s memoirs, transcripts from Ruth’s v-log. And there is poetry and Biblical quotes.

August is ‘Women in Translation Month’, and if you haven’t narrowed in on a book yet, do pick this one up. You will be swept away by the descriptions of places, the depth of empathy displayed by each of the characters, and by the meticulous research that the author has done before embarking on the book. The book could not have been an easy one to translate, and Ministhy S. has done a commendable job. Do read.

[I received a review copy from Harper Collins, but the views are my own.]