Description
By (author) Zughaib, Helen; By (artist) Zughaib, Helen
Twenty-five paintings by Helen Zughaib accompanied by text based on favorite stories told by her father about life in Syria and Lebanon in the 1930s and during World War II. Helen”s father was born in the Old Quarter of Damascus during Ottoman times, when Le Grande Syrie included the lands that are now demarkedas Syria and Lebanon. His father and mother, first cousins in an arranged marriage, were from the villages of Zahle and Durer Shweir in the Lebanese mountains, first cousins in an arranged marriage. “Let me tell you a story”, Helen Zughaib”s father used to say. What followed were absorbing tales of her father”s childhood in Damascus, village life in Lebanon in the late 1930s, amusing relatives, happenings the traditions of in their local Greek Orthodox Church, and major events in her father”s young life that lead him to emigrate to the United States in 1946. Helen Zughaib is an award-winning artist who has developed a distinctive technique working in gouache and ink. She was born in Beirut and , educated in the Middle East, Paris, and the US. She is currently based in Washington. Zughaib uses folkloric elements and a wide variety of other visual references to express the life and outlook of her family, the village community of her father”s young adult life, and her position as an international woman with special insight and empathy for the Middle East and its people.Critics note the parallels between Zughaib”s work as an artist with Arab roots to the art of contemporary “Native, Latin, and African American communities.” (Maymanah Farhat)
Review quote
True “stories involve three generations . . . and provide a valuable record of the ways of the old world.”
—Aramco World
Biographical note
“Twenty-five paintings by Helen Zughaib accompanied by favorite stories told by her father about life in Syria and Lebanon in the 1930s and during World War II. Helen”s father was born in the Old Quarter of Damascus during Ottoman times, when Le Grande Syrie included the lands that are now demarked as Syria and Lebanon. His father and mother, first cousins in an arranged marriage, were from the villages of Zahle and Durer Shweir in the Lebanese mountains. Helen Zughaib is an award-winning artist who has developed a distinctive technique working in gouache and ink. She was born in Beirut and educated in the Middle East, Paris, and the US. She is currently based in Washington. Elia Zughaib grew up in Syria and Lebanon before coming to America to study at Syracuse University. He received his PHD in Political Science from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. He joined the United States Foreign Service and served in Lebanon, Iraq, Kuwait, and France until his retirement. He and his wife, Georgia, live in Virginia.”
Publisher”s notice
Stories My Father Told Me has won The Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award from the Arab American National Museum 2021 Arab American Book Awards.
“The Arab American Book Award is an honor given each year to outstanding books written by or about Arab Americans. The Arab American Book Award was established in 2006 in partnership with librarians from the University of Toledo, and the mission is to celebrate Arab American literature and honor those who have produced exemplary work. Through outreach and publicity, the award raises greater awareness of Arab American literature and scholarship. We have awarded more than 100 books and every year we are honoring more titles and authors. Our book award is the only one in the nation created specifically to honor Arab American writers and books about the Arab American experience.”
For more information and the official listing of award recipients, please visit: https://arabamericanmuseum.org/book-awards/
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