In this mesmerizing novel, celebrated novelist and poet Khoury-Ghata presents the disintegration of a family and a country—both ruled by a fury that is fueled by fear. Set in Beirut, this semi-autobiographical story recounts terrifying moments from Khoury-Ghata’s own childhood. A horrific chain of events follows her father’s severe punishment of her brother for a crime that the village cannot understand.


QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

1. What kind of city is Khoury-Ghata’s Beirut? How does multiculturalism shape its social structure and citizens’ identities? How do the locals view foreigners? Are they accepting? What is the role of Westernization, and does it affect the city dwellers’ values, actions, and lives? How do characters manipulate their cultural identities?



2. The main character is interested in beauty and the arts; beauty queens, the tango, poetry. How important are appearances? Is beauty an integral part of the village life? Why does the main character enter beauty contests?

3. Discuss the book’s maternal figures. How do they compare to their husbands? How responsible are parents for their children’s fates? Are there similarities between the narrator’s mother and the weeping Madonna? What kind of power does the narrator’s mother have? Does inaction in the face of a tyrannical husband make this mother a martyr or, as the brother suggests, a tacit conspirator?

4. The narrator tells her brother that she wrote “with your pen, on the page that you hadn’t been able to fill.” How much of this book was written for her brother? For whom else does she speak? Why would the narrator choose to write such a book?

5. From the pulpy red pomegranate tree to the stained sheets at Renee’s childbirth, Khoury-Ghata frequently uses the imagery of blood. Does blood appear elsewhere? Are the bloody scenes related? How do blood’s traditional connotations— violence, passion, and family lineage, for instance—interact with Khoury-Ghata’s discussion of it? How does the brother’s “blood disease,” or heroin addiction, connect to this theme?

6. Is the father’s “curse of the monastery” fulfilled? Does religion more frequently “curse” or empower characters that believe? Could the Vinikoffs’ ceaseless hunt for treasure be read as a leap of faith, since they cannot be certain that the treasure truly exists? Are we to admire or pity the Vinikoffs’ efforts?


7. The main characters in this book are required to speak a very formal French instead of street French or Arabic. Do literacy and multilingualism alienate them from their community? How does it help them? The narrator’s brother’s relationship with language changes over the course of time: What is the relevance of his linguistic degeneration? How do his family members cope with it? How do the boy’s rebellion and illness affect the family’s views on literature and education?
8. The narrator frequently moves from Beirut to a small village in the countryside. Is she forced to move due to the war? How does this change the narrator? How does the time spent in each place differ?

 

 

ADVANCE PRAISE FOR A HOUSE AT THE EDGE OF TEARS:

“I found A House at the Edge of Tears stunning and provocative, compelling and haunting. Vénus Khoury-Ghata has weaved like a lace maker the story of her brother, herself, her family, and a society far removed from any bland ideal...using the finest, poetic, hypnotic prose which pricks you like needles.” —Hanan al-Shaykh


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Lebanese poet and novelist Vénus Khoury-Ghata was born in Beirut, but has lived in France since 1973. Her poetry collection She Says, also translated by Marilyn Hacker, was recently published in the United States and named a Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry.

Click here for a PDF