In the Country of Men

by Hisham Matar

Hardcover, 2007

Status

Available

Call number

F22

Genres

General Fiction

All Topics

Fiction

Publication

The Dial Press (2007), Edition: First Edition, 246 pages

Description

Libya, 1979. Nine-year-old Suleiman's days are circumscribed by the narrow rituals of childhood: outings to the ruins surrounding Tripoli, games with friends played under the burning sun, exotic gifts from his father's constant business trips abroad. But his nights have come to revolve around his mother's increasingly disturbing bedside stories full of old family bitterness. And then one day Suleiman sees his father across the square of a busy marketplace, his face wrapped in a pair of dark sunglasses. Wasn't he supposed to be away on business yet again? Why is he going into that strange building with the green shutters? Why did he lie? Suleiman is soon caught up in a world he cannot hope to understand-where the sound of the telephone ringing becomes a portent of grave danger; where his mother frantically burns his father's cherished books; where a stranger full of sinister questions sits outside in a parked car all day; where his best friend's father can disappear overnight, next to be seen publicly interrogated on state television. In the Country of Men is a stunning depiction of a child confronted with the private fallout of a public nightmare. But above all, it is a debut of rare insight and literary grace.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member Chatterbox

This is a fascinating glimpse at the turbulence of Libyan society in the late 1970s, seen through the eyes of a young boy and mirrored in the turbulence of his own family.

Suleiman's mother feels as if she is the victim of her own family, forcibly married off at the age of 14 after being spotted

having a coffee with a boy her age in public. Now Suleiman's father has become the victim of the Khadaffi regime, as has the father of his closest friend, Kareem. Suleiman himself struggles with truth that is withheld by his mother and his fathers' friends to protect him, and the truth that is shoved in front of his face by the television and the secret policeman who hopes to enlist him to damn his father.

It's a classic story of a loss of innocence and the collapse of a family in the midst of oppression, but Matar's knack for characterization and his impeccable prose lift it well above average and ensured it read as more than just another coming-of-age-in-turbulent-times-and-oppressive-society saga. Suleiman muses about the nature of vindication after watching a televised hanging: "Where were the heroes, the bullets, the scurrying mob, the happy endings that used to send us out of the dark cinema halls rosy-cheeked with joy, slapping one another’s backs, rejoicing that our man had won, that God was with him, that God didn’t leave him alone in his hour of need, that the world worked in the ways we expected it to work and didn’t falter?" But the author grabbed me with his prose much earlier on, when Suleiman describes his visit to the site of Lepcis Magna with Kareem and the latter's father: "Absence was everywhere. Arches stood without the walls and roofs of the shops they had once belonged to and seemed, in the empty square under the open sky, like old men trying to remember where they were going. White-stone-cobbled streets—some heading toward the sea, others into the surrounding green desert—marched bravely into the rising sand that erased them." This goes onto my "top books of the year" list; 4.7 stars.

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LibraryThing member kidzdoc

This debut novel begins in the Libyan capital of Tripoli in 1979, during the early years of Muammar el-Qaddafi's reign of terror, and is narrated by Suleiman, a 9 year old boy whose father is forced into hiding from Qaddafi's henchmen due to his pro-democratic beliefs after his best friend is

beaten, arrested and charged with being an enemy of the state. As an only child whose mother provides little comfort due to her own illness, Suleiman struggles to understand and cope with the disappearance of his father and his good friend's father, as the adults around him attempt to shield him from the brutal reality that takes place in the streets and is displayed on television. The stress takes its toll on Suleiman, whose behaviors become more erratic and inscrutable to his mother and uncle, particularly when he spends more time with a strange man who keeps track of the neighborhood's activities.

I enjoyed this insightful glimpse into the mind and psyche of a young child who is forced to grow up far too quickly, without reliable or completely trustworthy parents and other role models to guide him.

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LibraryThing member cestovatela

If In the Country of Men were my boyfriend, I'd break it off with him, but I'd say, "it's not you, it's me." The book is pleasingly descriptive, and the nine-year-old narrator hasexactly the right mix of knowing without understanding for his age. The author applies that poignantly to the story of

witnessing how an oppressive government affected his parents' lives. I particularly liked how this book was honest about the uglier things that people do to survive in such a regime. Yet, for all that, I found myself unmoved by most of the book. I got through it easily enough, but I never longed to know what was happening or thought about the characters when I wasn't reading. The truth is, I've read a lot of stories about coming of age under a repressive government, and I felt like I'd read this story before. However, I think readers who have not been over-exposed to that genre would like this book quite well -- hence the feeling that my problems with the book are more personal than literary.

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LibraryThing member bibliobibuli

I don't feel that I so much read Hisham Matar's Booker shortlisted In the Country of Men as watched it.

The movie in my head was one of those moody art-house things full of meaningful glances which hinted at unspoken words, secrets whispered in corners, and long poignant silences. It was shot in

black and white, and the scenes alternating between the claustrophobic dark of interiors and the searing brilliance of the sunlight which bleaches everything of its colour.

I felt so opressed by the weight of fear, in thisnailbitingly tense novel that I had to put it down for two whole days (although I had gobbled down the first half of it on the AirAsia flight back from Bali.)

It's set in Libya. It didn't have to be. It could be set in any police state where there is the inevitable anticiption of the knock on the door and the possibility of torture, imprisonment. And worse. One of the most disturbing scenes in the book is an account of the public hanging of a gentle art historian shown on state TV.

The story is told through the eyes of Sulaiman a nine year old boy who struggles to make sense of what is going on around him. His father, Baba, is one of the liberal intelligensia fighting for democratic reform. He is frequently absent from home, ostensibly on business trips but in reality on attempts to foment social change and a push for democracy among the student population.

His wife and son, meanwhile, are vulnerable and afraid at home. Suleiman's mother takes refuge in alcholol, procured illegally from the local baker. She tells Suleiman that it is her "medicine", and spends the evenings relating 1001 Nights and her own story of domestic tyranny - both tales in which women are treated as mere chattels. She was at 14 forced into marriage against her will because she had spoken to a boy in public.

The strain of witnessing so much that he does not understand carries Suleiman to breaking point.

He longs for an initiation into the world of men, principally so that he can protect his mother, whom he loves almost incestuously. But childhood innocence is lost as he discovers the power of siding with the enemy and bullying those weaker than himself. Violence and betrayal suck him in.

The Bookseller reports that the novel :

... is already characterised in book trade shorthand as "the Libyan Kiter Runner" ...

but I found this novel very much stronger, and a great deal more disturbing without The Kite Runner's easy answers and the blare of Hollywood sentimentality.

Like Hosseini's novel, In the Country of Men contains strong autobiographical elements. Matar fled with his family from Libya to Egypt where he attended English boarding school.

Would I recommend the novel? Yes. The writing is sensual, the storytelling compelling and powerful. It asks difficult questions about how relationships survive in an atmosphere of oppression and fear and I feel that it fully deserved its place on the Booker shortlist - I'm just glad that I wasn't one of the judges on that committee.

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LibraryThing member mrstreme

Young Suleiman is nine years old when Libya is taken over by dictator, Muammar el-Qaddafi, in 1979. Having a modern eye knowledge of Qaddafi's reign provides a foreboding insight into the lives and choices in Hisham Matar's debut novel, In The Country of Men. Told from the perspective of Suleiman,

readers learn about the harsh political realties of living in Libya during Qaddafi's early years.

Suleiman is an only child - an object of affection but remorse for his mother, who was forced into marriage at 14 when seen in a cafe with a boy her age. Suleiman's father is aloof, living a double life as a political activist that would eventually catch up to his family. Through Suleiman's eyes, we see how Qaddafi's reign brought terror to many families, as fathers were whisked off in cars and telephone lines were tapped. Suleiman's family was not excluded, and he becomes confused about why his father is lying about what he does for a living.

Matar's writing style is pitch perfect, especially with a narrator so young. Very readable, In The Country of Men will make you cringe and shake your head at what is unfolding in Suleiman's life. The whole time, though, you root for Suleiman, hoping he and his family can somehow escape unscathed.

With the current political activity in Libya, this book is very telling and offers insight into how Libya has become the country it is today. I congratulate Hisham Matar for continuing to write about Libya, despite his personal tragedies. If you're looking for a fast-paced, thrilling book, I highly recommend In The Country of Men.

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LibraryThing member crimson-tide

A very well written and poignant look through the eyes of a nine year old boy growing up in the violent and repressive Libyan dictatorship. He's lonely and confused, not understanding the world, his father's absences or his mother's moods and alcoholic episodes; longing for his parent's love and

for acceptance by anyone. Just wanting to belong. A good example of how damaging it can be to not be honest and open with children. They're more intelligent and able to accept the truth than we often think. And it's a great look at families and how love and ties can continue across all manner of boundaries and difficulties. The final paragraph moved me to tears.

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LibraryThing member gaskella

Since the escalation of political unrest in Libya recently, the author of this 2006 Booker shortlisted novel has been in demand to comment about living under Gaddafi – something he is particularly well placed to do. His own family fled Libya for Egypt in 1979, and his father, a former UN diplomat

and political dissident was kidnapped in 1990 in Cairo, while Matar was studying in London and Hisham has not seen him since. (source Wikipedia).

In the Country of Men is narrated by Suleiman looking back at the summer of 1979 when he was nine years old. That was to be the summer when he was exposed to the terror of living under a tyrannical regime, finding out that his father wasn’t a businessman but something to him that’s more sinister, for at nine, Suleiman cannot comprehend the secrecy and strain that being an active political dissident puts on the family.

Suleiman, one day, sees his father at the window of a house in town when he was meant to be abroad travelling. He can’t believe his father has lied to him, and this will prove damaging to their relationship. His mother, who was forced into marriage with his father, seeks solace in her ‘medicine’, obtained under the counter from the baker, and in her drunken stupor tells Suleiman about her early years. Then he has to stop playing with his best friend Kareem, whose father is taken away one afternoon on suspicion of treason …

"The car pulled over in front of Kareen’s house. Kareem froze, as if his heart had dropped into his shoes. Four men got out, leaving the doors open. The car was like a giant dead moth in the sun. Three of the men ran inside the house, the fourth, who was the driver and seemed to be their leader, waited on the pavement. He smiled at the two fat brothers Masoud and Ali. I didn’t register then that he knew them. None of use had seen him before. He had a horrible face, pockmarked like pumice stone. His men reappeared, holding Ustath Rashid between them. He didn’t struggle. Auntie Salma trailed behind as if an invisible string connected her to her husband. The man with the pockmarked face slapped Ustath Rashid, suddenly and ferociously. It sounded like fabric tearing, it stopped Auntie Salma…
… Ustath Rashid looked towards us, and when his eyes met Kareem’s, his face changed. He looked like he was about to cry or vomit. Then he doubled over and began to cough. The men seemed not to know what to do. They looked at each other, then at Auntie Salma, who had one hand over her mouth, the other clasped around her braided hair that fell as thick as an anchor rope over her shoulder. They grabbed Ustath Rashid, threw him into the car, slammed the doors shut and sped between us, crushing our goal posts. I couldn’t see Ustath Rashid’s head between the two men sitting on either side of him in the back seat; he must have been coughing still."

The rumours start to fly, and everyone lives in fear that their family will be next to be accused of treason – there is a complex web of betrayals and back-scratching toadying. In this poisonous atmosphere, Suleiman becomes fascinated by Sharief, the pockmarked abductor who starts watching his father’s house – and you know no good can come of it.

Matar is an extremely eloquent writer. There are some wonderful descriptions – "The car was like a giant dead moth in the sun", yet when he has to, he can be brutal and matter of fact – in describing a hanging for instance. The relationships between the boys, Suleiman and his friends are encapsulated by their games of oneupmanship and casual but hurtful joshing. The book creates a vivid and sad picture of growing up under Gaddafi’s regime, and it was hard to believe that this is Matar’s first novel. Highly recommended. (8.5/10)

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LibraryThing member cbl_tn

Suleiman, an only child, remembers the events from the summer of 1979 in Libya when everything changed for his family. Suleiman, affectionately known as Slooma, was nine years old that summer – old enough to know that something was wrong, but not old enough to understand what was happening.

Slooma's father held the wrong political views, which didn't bode well for his health or longevity under the Qaddafi regime. Slooma's mother was often “ill” when his father was away. While “ill”, she would confide her resentment of her early forced marriage to her son, adding a weight of responsibility too heavy for a 9-year-old to bear. When the adults in his life fail to explain what is happening to Slooma, he draws his own conclusions, some of which have disastrous consequences.

While the culture and setting will be unfamiliar to many readers, Slooma's dysfunctional family situation will be all too familiar for some. Slooma's fears, the responsibility he feels for taking care of his mother during her bouts of “illness”, and his exposure to violence eventually affect his behavior. I alternated between sympathy and revulsion as Slooma began to act cruelly toward those who were weaker than he was. I think the fact that he manages to portray Slooma as both a victim and, more subtly, as an abuser says something about Matar's skill as a writer.

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LibraryThing member FionaCat

This is the story of 9-year-old Suleiman, growing up in late 1970's Libya. He doesn't understand whats going on in the grown-up world around him -- even after his best friend's father is arrested and interrogated on TV, Suleiman cooperates with the government man who has come asking questions about

his own father. Troubled by his mother's "illness" (alcoholism) and desparate for his often-absent father's affection, Suleiman does many things without thinking, usually not for the best.

This is a thought provoking look at a world where children grow up watching interrogations and executions of television. It compares favorably with "The Kite Runner", although it is much shorter and less complex.

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LibraryThing member stephanieloves

I'm normally not a fan of historical fiction, but as a world literature lover, I couldn't help but try this one. Even though it was a little difficult to get into, I am so, so glad I did.

In the Country of Men is a gripping account, from a small boy's perspective, of Gaddafi's infamous terror

regime. It shimmers in the triumphs and fumes in the horrors of the the Libyan revolution of 1979, and expertly depicts Libyan culture and customs—the entire "world full of men and the greed of men"—as well. I found this a shocking, affecting read, and be forewarned: this book hits hard and will leave bruises.

There are a several difficult issues tackled in Suleiman's first-person narrative, each coated with a blasé haze of childish charm. The exterior ones among these, include gender inequality and societal persecution, but Hisham Matar dares to venture deeper as the story spins around the values of family, friendship, nationalism, and the definition of loyalty. He portrays in deliberate precision and indelicacy, the oppression of not only women, but also of humans and human rights; this is all poignant, truthful, and startlingly refreshing.

Facets of the narrator's childhood make him the most vulnerable, and yet most potent character. Most of the other characters are shallow or, as with the central themes, influenced by Suleiman's innocence and lack of awareness, but they are nevertheless lyrically and memorably described.

I'll admit this book was a bit slow for first half, but the second half blew me away. In the Country of Men is not the sort of book I'll soon forget. Hisham Matar has woven a brilliant novel on what it is to be family, what it means to grow up, and what it takes to be free, because they are all—the author claims—achievable aspirations... but only to few, in the land of men.

Pros: Raw, uncensored // Stunning literary style with both graceful and repulsive notes // Fascinating perspective of Gaddafi's Libya // Impressive stylistically, historically, and culturally // Mesmerizing and haunting // Unforgettable

Cons: Slow-moving start // Dry at times

Love: I am in love with the way Matar writes:
"If love starts somewhere, if it is a hidden force that is brought out by a person, like light off a mirror, for me that person was her. There was anger, there was pity, even the dark warm embrace of hate, but always love and always the joy that surrounds the beginning of love."

"Grief loves the hollow, all it wants is to hear its own echo. Be careful."

"[In me], there is this void, this emptiness I am trying to get at like someone frightened of the dark, searching for a match to strike. I see it in others, this emptiness. My expression shifts constantly, like that of a prostitute who waits in your car while you run across a busy road to buy a new pack of cigarettes for the night. When you walk back, ripping the cellophane, before she has time to see you, you catch sight of her, temporarily settled in another role as a sister or a wife or a friend. How readily and thinly we procure these fictional selves, deceiving the world and what we might have become if only we hadn't got in the way, if only we had waited to see what might have become of us."

Verdict: Hisham Matar's literary debut glitters in the backdrop of 1979 Tripoli and lingers in the yearning mind. Every so often you pick up a book so resonating and so captive of emotional truth, that it sends shivers down your spine and leaves an ache in your chest. In the Country of Men is one of those books.

Rating: 8 out of 10 hearts (4 stars): An engaging read; highly recommended.

Source: Complimentary copy provided by TripFiction in exchange for an honest and unbiased review (thank you!).

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LibraryThing member LukeS

In "In the Country of Men" Hisham Matar gives us an apparently autobiographical account of a boy's experiences after the coup which put Qadhafi in power in Libya. We see the world through the eyes and heart of a nine-year-old boy, who watches his parents' involvement, along with that of his friends

and acquaintances, and this is very effectively done. We believe his impulses, his anger, his hopes, and his insecurities. We also believe a young boy would have the perverse and misguided impulses this one has.

Young Soulieman watches his pretty mother like a hawk. He takes his cues from her, and would like nothing more than to wish her angst away. He hates it when she's "sick" (drinking), because it messes with his secure childhood. Like most boys his age, he idolizes his father, who, apart from a few gratifying episodes, remains fairly aloof from his son. Qadhafi's early regime is literally brought home in all its horrific detail. Soulieman witnesses far too much ghastly reality, and this is another strength of this book. There is a hint of hopefulness at the book's conclusion, after the narrator has lived in Cairo for some years.

This is one of the political books which is well-received by the public, particularly the influential public. It was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize. Its portrayal of a young boys' life and times, and his reaction to them is real and moving. The plot moves along slowly, however, and follows the boy's perceptions a little too closely to get any perspective. Perhaps that is the main point. A good book, no doubt. I am, however, a little mystified at the Man Booker Prize consideration.

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LibraryThing member Gary10

Well paced, depressing account of Libya during the tyrannical reign of Momar Kadafi, told through the eyes of a young boy. Interesting account of how tyranny affects the lives of young people observing it unfold.

LibraryThing member heathersblue

The book was very good…not upbeat by any means as there is political revolution, fathers taken by the Lybian government and a nine year old boy in the midst of it all that dreams mostly of finding a way to rescue his mother from events that have caused him pain. A professor I one had would call

it a Coming of Age Novel, another wold have called it post-colonial literature, and it would have even found a weird place in a class I took at the University of Oregon entitled Beach Reading…as there is a sea involved.

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LibraryThing member EBT1002

Set in Libya in 1979, this thought-provoking novel is based in the internal life of a 9-year-old boy caught up in a cruelly oppressive political regime. His family's resistance to -- and succumbing to -- the Revolution is the setting in which Suleiman's encounters with his own cruelty, oppression,

and fear emerge. The author effectively explores the unfolding of human cruelty, violence, greed, and redemption (maybe) within self, between friends, within a community, and at the highest levels of government. Disturbing at moments (I'm not sure I'll ever forget the image of Suleiman, standing on a dock, placing the bottom of his foot on top of a drowning man's head), the novel does not itself succumb to an unrealistically happy ending. But it does provide a nugget of redemption and reminds us of the fundamental, irrevocable nature of attachment and need.

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LibraryThing member oldbookswine

Told by an adult man remembering his childhood in Libya after the revolution, this novel shows the impact on children of war. Sulieman witnesses his friend's father taken from the neighborhood and tried on public television. He also sees his father suffer beatings of government troops.

LibraryThing member theageofsilt

This vividly told story of a boy growing up in Quaddifi's police state that is Libya captures the confusion and turmoil of a child unable to understand the political intrigue that threatens to destroy his family. The title suggests not only the brutality of the police state, but also the oppression

of women, especially depicted in the story of Suleiman's beloved mother forced into marriage at fourteen. The author reveals the sense of menace that suffuses ordinary life and never loses the authentic voice of the child narrator.

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LibraryThing member manupaulose

Good one. Describing Libyan oppression through eyes of a child. Great narrative

LibraryThing member shawnd

This started slow and the early almost boundary-less relationship between the son and mother was particularly disturbing. However the plot expanded outside of the house into the neighborhood, and then to the larger city. Very soon the expanse opened to secret police, torture, and the perils of any

infidelity to the Libyan ruler Khaddafi. There is a special energy that comes from the main character, a boy, seeing clues he can't completely understand, while the reader can put them all together.

The timeframe lengthens and events come faster. As the boy grows, the inevitable separation from the parents occurs, and the author weaves the hope of the boy and the bitterness of separation in a way that saves the reader--the boy had been prepared for this by the distance his parents had created through their lies to him.

The book is a political statement, and a reminder that so many people in the world live in a place where they must be always believing and acting so as to not arouse ire and authoritarian excesses.

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LibraryThing member brianinbuffalo

A well-written book that tells a compelling story and creates multi-dimensional characters. Still, I don't think Matar's work lives up the rave reviews it has received. In particular, the middle of the book seems to lose its punch.

LibraryThing member livrecache

I really enjoyed this book, and the way it addressed complex issues. It was easy to read, and the point of view was interesting -- the narrator remembering himself and his reactions as a nine year old boy: somewhat disturbing reactions at times.

LibraryThing member kakadoo202

a very fitting book to read at this present time while the government in lybia is trying to make sense out of its laws after their dictators death. intersting perspective out of a young kids eyes. things he does not understand but we adults know adds to the underlying horror and terror of this

story. a heartbreaking ending which is simply written but yet powerful

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LibraryThing member gwendolyndawson

This concise novel depicts the effects of Libyan strongman Khadafy's 1969 September revolution on the el-Dawani family, as seen by nine-year-old Suleiman, who narrates as an adult. Living in Tripoli 10 years after the revolution, Suleiman's world is turned upside down when his friend's father is

arrested as a traitor, giving rise to Suleiman's fear that his own father will be next.

At the heart, this is a book about betrayal and its effects, but it does not examine the matter as closely as hoped.

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LibraryThing member maritimer

It is difficult to empathize with the damaged boy at the centre of this story. Set in Gaddafi's Libya, the boy becomes inevitably complicit in the brutality and betrayal that permeate his life. The problem is that one does not sense any resistance to this complicity, he just seems hollow and

reactive. The one compelling character in the novel is the boy's 23 year old mother, who in spite being victimized in just about every conceivable way, still manages, in this miserable country of men, to behave honourably.

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LibraryThing member DubaiReader

Unanimous!

This was a rare event - a book club choice that everyone rated at between 4 and 5 stars. I think the only other book to achieve this recently was Hisham Matar's more recent book, Anatomy of a Disappearance. We are definitely fans of his work. Unfortunately he seems to take about 5 years

to write each book.

Narrated by 9 year-old Suleiman, this novel perfectly describes a young boy's confusion when surrounded by oppression and its spin-offs, while not really understanding what he is seeing. He protects his mother, yet expresses cruelty to other boys and the local tramp - those he is able to bully.
The novel is set in 1979 when Qaddafi was all-powerful, and his word was law. Suspicion fell upon those thought to be against the regime and punishment was brutal. When the finger is pointed at a neighbour and close friend of Suleiman's father, the tension is palpable.

There were some distinct similarities between Matar's two books, particularly the depressed mother and the telling of the narrative from a young boy's point of view. Also the exile into Cairo. (We know that Matar's family was originally Libyan and left to settle in Cairo, which then begs the question as to his mother's state of health?)

Sadly we may have to wait a while for another book by Hisham Matar, but when it hits the shelves, we'll be there!

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LibraryThing member TurboBookSnob

In the Country of Men is told from the point of view of Suleiman, a nine-year-old boy living in Tripoli , Libya in 1979, under the rule of Muammar Quaddafi, the “guide.”

To Suleiman, life in Tripoli is a mystery. He doesn't understand why his father tells him he is going abroad on a business

trip, but then sees him wearing dark glasses in the middle of the city's Martyrs Square . He doesn't understand why, when his father is away, his mother becomes curiously ill, and must drink a clear liquid “medicine” that she secretly procures from the town's baker.

During the course of the novel, Suleiman is plagued by many horrors. His best friend Kareem's father, Ustath Rashid, disappears. Men from the government come to his home to question his mother about the whereabouts of his father. After that visit, his father's friend Moosa and his mother burn all of his father's books – except one. Suleiman believes that he is helping his father by saving one book, called Democracy Now, and hiding it under his mattress. He talks to the government agent who is constantly parked in front of their house, and is duped into providing information about his father's friends, thinking that he is helping vouch for his father's character. His father, too, has been taken into custody. Suleiman witnesses Ustath Rashid being publicly executed in a basketball stadium, on national television. After his mother intercedes on his father's behalf with a neighbour with some pull with the Guide, Suleiman witnesses his beaten and broken father returning home.

This is a life that no nine-year-old should ever have to experience. Matar renders the execution scene in the basketball stadium with horrifying emotion and detail. This is a simple, but poignant story.

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