A Calamity of Noble Houses

Two prominent families, an illicit love affair, and a chorus of voices with multiple perspectives add up to a gripping saga set in modern Tunisia

"A kaleidoscopic portrait of Tunisian history."--The New York Times

One fateful night in December 1935, the destinies of two prominent families are changed forever. Zubaida, the young wife of Mohsen Ennaifer, is suspected of a clandestine love affair with Tahar, a radical intellectual from humble origins. This scandalous tryst has many facets, many truths, that are recounted in the voices of the eleven different narrators who, in a feat of storytelling virtuosity, animate this spectacular novel. A complex fresco of secrets, memories, accusations, regrets, and passions set against the backdrop of a country in turmoil, in search of its modern identity.  

A compelling, muti-generational story of women’s lives in one of the Arab World’s most intriguing countries, a drama of forbidden love, and a contemporary narrative in which the truth remains forever slightly out of reach, A Calamity of Noble Houses is Amira Ghenim’s English language debut.  

Contributor: Miled Faiza (Translated by), Karen McNeill (Translated by)

Translator: Miled Faiza, Karen McNeill

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