Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts by Tarek Hassan Refaat – English Book Review

Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts is a short story collection by Egyptian author Tarek Hassan Refaat. The 24-story collection, written in Arabic, is about women in general and Egyptian women in particular.

The stories are in the form of snippets of women's lives, which makes them easily relatable, while at the same time highlighting problems within the home and society.

At the end of Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts, Refaat asks the reader to look at women and the world with a view that is different and "free of judgement, free of condescension; to look without feeling better or more important than others; to look at a woman as she is: a person, with their own mind, who is capable of anything and everything." 

He further adds: "Women lack nothing except the need to have others deal with them as a person, an independent person, just like men. All that is stopping us from doing so are ideas and beliefs that are neither related to truth nor religion."

In each story, the main character or protagonist is a woman, although two stories have men as the main characters but they also revolve around women. Stories vary in length from one to three pages at most.

Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts opens with the shortest but most powerful story in the collection. Loosely translated to "A Woman and Her Suitcase," this first story paints vivid pictures in the reader's mind and leaves strong emotions in the reader's heart.

"Gamila and her Coffee" is a relatable story, and anyone who is a fan of romance will enjoy it, while "Sherine and [the] War" is a magnificent piece tackling women's struggles in Egyptian society. Five stars to this one. Here's a short excerpt from the story:

"Sherine stood before the large mirror on the inside of her wardrobe door. Silently, she stared at her face and ran her through her hair, breathing in the end of a day that felt more like a war than a day; a war like those told in stories about World War I, where soldiers run to take over some place, run with all their speed and might, ignoring a hail of bullets and shells fired by armored tanks, only to reach that point where they can stand tall then rest.

But Sherine felt like this war was her everyday struggle. Every day, she had to wage her own war against a hail of criticism, judgements, harassment and more; but worse, she was always blamed and told she was the party who wronged others not the one who was wronged."

Not all the stories in Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts, highlight women's heroics. Some offer criticism about the way some women live, especially in Egypt. "Salma and Other Women" is about that; it tackles how women often compare themselves to other women, try to compete with men, and how many women are often willing to hurt others to rise or to appear better.

Meanwhile, "Amal and the People in Her Building" sheds light on how people in Egypt often look at divorced women, like how men and other married women look at them.

I can't translate this title but the story, transliterated to "Talata Sokkar Nabata," is one of the funniest stories in Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts. Five stars to this one.

I also love "Nada and the Sea" not just because the main character shares my name but because I totally relate to this one. It's as if I'm in the story and it paints a beautiful picture in my mind. It's also how I view the sea; a place I can tell worries and stories. Another five stars are in order.

In "Mona and Beautifying [the] Pain," Refaat tackles the prevalent idea of the strong independent woman, which has forced women to create versions of themselves that appear strong and invincible on the outside. Five stars to this one.

Other recommended stories in Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts include "Emad's Dream," "Hazem and Marwa," "Feryal Wins," and "Farah Writes," among others.

I have a few other comments that pertain to the Arabic short story collection like repeated words and phrases. But should this collection be translated into English, I think this can be easily overcome. Many of the stories don't really involve dialogue, so it would be nice to have some dialogue here and there.

Overall rating for Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts by Tarek Hassan Refaat: 4 stars.

I read Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts by Tarek Hassan Refaat in 2018 and it made my top books of that year.

Note 1: This collection is currently available in Arabic, but if you like the review, leave me a comment below and we'll see if we can convince the author to get it translated.

Note 2: The translations provided in this review are my personal translation of the Arabic book.

Add Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts on Goodreads.

About the Author:

Tarek Hassan Refaat is an Egyptian author. Though he works in information technology, he likes to write short stories and novels in both English and Arabic.

His first book was Ruptured in 2011, followed by Ribbons and Heels in 2013 and then Broken Shadows.

Silent Lips, Speaking Hearts is first publication in Arabic, with publishing platform Kotobna. Tarek has also published another Arabic collection called Moments and is currently working on publishing two more short story collections in 2020.

Connect with Tarek Hassan Refaat via Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and Amazon.

Takhayyal writing prompt 106: Red Sea Dreams

Welcome back Ladies and Gentlemen, Artists, Poets, Writers, Authors, Dreamers, Friends and Family; Welcome EVERYONE to Nadaness In Motion's monthly picture-prompt writing challenge Takhayyal or Imagine.

Arabic for Imagine, Takhayyal is a challenge for writers of all ages and genres; a place to spark creativity and explore new genres.

Finally April is here, which where I'm from means lots of wind and dust and in other parts of the world, it's when flowers bloom. But considering the on-going coronavirus pandemic, even if there are blooming flowers somewhere no one will be out to enjoy them.

That said April is National Poetry Month. So combining poetry month with home-confinement for many across the world, and some reports that the earth is finally breathing since humanity is cooped up, I think it is fitting to have another nature-inspired writing prompt.

This time I'm featuring photography from friend Sara Shaker. You can follow her on Instagram for more photography and nature photography.

I was with her when this picture was taken in Abou Galloum, the Red Sea, Egypt. It's a gorgeous location for snorkeling and diving. Once this pandemic recedes, I highly recommend you visit and take a swim.

So, look at the image, there are corals beneath the water, and let your imagination take flight. What happens beneath the pristine waters of the Red Sea? If you were there right now, what would you do? Do you have fins to swim with the fish?

Photography by Sara Shaker, near Abou Ghalloum, the Red Sea, Egypt

Whether you write short stories, flash fiction, poetry, thoughts, an imaginary situation, an artistic thought; you name it and write it.

Whatever you can write, Takhayyal is a place for all creatives to have fun and imagine. 

Leave your piece in the comments below or post it on your blog and share the link here. All pieces will get comments and be shared on social media.

Update: I'm keeping this prompt as the image for May 2020 since I'm a little pressed for time this month. New image will be released in June.

General rules:

·        No nudity, violence, and/or abuse.

·  Use the image for inspiration and write your piece in the comments below or publish it on your blog and leave the link to it in the comments

·        Your piece MUST be inspired in some way or other by the above picture

·        Multiple entries allowed

·     It is not required but it is a nice and encouraging gesture to comment on others' pieces.

·        Feel free to add your Twitter handle (@....) so I can tag you in my tweets or tag me @NadanessSobhi and I'll retweet you :)

Let's IMAGINE!

Bellamy by Darcy Coates – Book Review

There was something wrong with Bellamy. [Leanne] had been running from it for most of her life. It had brought her home, though.  Perhaps it had always intended to. Perhaps no one ever truly escaped the building."

Bellamy is a creepy short story by author Darcy Coates. I think I downloaded this book when the author offered it for free for a limited time for newsletter subscribers. And I'm glad I downloaded it.

The story opens with Leanne who has returned to the orphanage where she and her brother were placed nearly 30 years prior. We later learn that her brother disappeared from the orphanage and was never found.

"The exterior was flat and grim, more like a warehouse than a home." – This is the first description the reader gets of Bellamy.

Bellamy is narrated in the third person but it's clear that the main view point is Leanne's, who has been struggling to forget about this so-called home. The reader quickly notices that Leanne wants no connection with the home, whereas the 'home' wants Leanne. It's as if she escaped when she shouldn't have.

"Thirty years should have been long enough to forget the home. Thirty years should have been long enough for the dreams to stop."

As the story progresses, Leanne goes back inside the run-down orphanage. However, there was a purpose to Leanne's visit; "she wasn't there just to call up old memories."

Both through memory and flashback, we're told that children were disappearing in Bellamy. I liked how Darcy Coates interweaved Leanne's memories into the story, giving the reader the perfect background about events that happened 30 years prior to the story being told.

When Leanne enters the once-upon-a-time home, she also enters the places she wasn't allowed to explore as a child and there Bellamy's secret or rather secrets are slowly revealed.

Bellamy scared me and I loved it! There were lots of twists that kept me on edge and that had me read the book/story in one sitting. I can probably read this novella over and over.

Overall rating for Bellamy: 5 stars

Add Bellamy by Darcy Coates on Goodreads.

Note: I originally meant to publish this book review October, aka my month of Halloween but the month flew by and obviously I didn't publish the review.

Update: Bellamy by Darcy Coates has made it to Nadaness In Motion's Top Books of 2019.

Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate by Bharat Krishnan– Book Review

Book: Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate

Author: Bharat Krishnan

Genre: Mythology, middle grade, children's

Number of pages: 72 pages

Publication date: 8 October 2019

Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate by Bharat Krishnan is a collection of 25 short stories on Hindu mythology, covering topics like karma, dharma, kama, and more. The book also includes several artworks that give some visual to the tales.

Growing up, Krishnan fell in love with Hindu mythology, but when he went to research, he discovered that there were no texts on the rich Hindu mythology, at least none that were "targeted towards kids my age then." Hence, Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate became a project that was born on 8 October 2019.

In the intro, Krishnan explains the reason he wrote Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate, saying: "I wrote this book because I wanted my loved ones to hear about Rama and Krishna and Saraswati as they also learned of Thor and Hercules, of Horus and Ra, of Noah and Moses."

After every tale, Krishnan highlights why he added that particular story. In some pieces, Krishnan makes comparisons with other mythology, Greek, Egyptian, along with Christian references.

An important point to remember about Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate is that "In Hindu mythology, time and again, we find that good and evil are meaningless words. It is the actions that go behind those words that matter."  I struggled with this a bit as I read, feeling that good should conquer evil but as you read, you will notice that some characters can be good or evil, depending on the story and situation.

The book opens with "The Egg Came First," the story of how the Hindu gods were created. As you move along the book, you'll notice more bits on creation. The Brahman, the supreme being of infinity, had 10 children, including Vishnu, the Preserver, who appears in many of the stories in various forms. From the Brahman's thighs, demons were created and later we see a witch as well.

Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate on my Kindle.

In Hindu mythology, and as Krishnan puts it, "balance is key…and what seems right in one instance may not be so in other cases."

I loved the story of "The Elephant God" as I have often been curious about Ganesha. I liked how several of the story titles had literary references, like "The Lady of the Lake," which is reminiscent of King Arthur's Camelot and "The Lion King."

The story titled "Ganesha's Hubris" is a five-star piece. I felt like it was a kind of fable and therefore highly recommend it.

"A princess once prayed to the sun that she would have a boy, but she did not consider the truism that sometimes not getting what you want is a marvelous stroke of luck…" This is how one story opens. It's a powerful tale that had me wondering who's side I was on and why I couldn't sympathize with the mother in this story, Kundi.

The longest story carries the name of the collection "Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate" and is a remarkable piece. however, it's considerably bloody and violent compared to the rest of the stories.

I liked "Fish Justice" which is reminiscent of Noah's Ark and introduces the concept of Dharma in the Hindu way of life. "Dharma serves as the basis for law, the notion that people have a duty towards one another to fill societal roles that transcend self-interest," Krishnan explains. I wish this would be something cultures can recognize because it would make life more peaceful.

In the story "The Lion King" one particular speech reminded me of Macbeth and the punned words of the three witches.

I would have liked an explanation of the "boons" that people in the stories ask the gods for because there were several instances where people requested them and the gods gave them readily. It seems to be a concept in Hindu mythology.

One of the things I liked about Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate was the use of Indian and Hindu words. They are often followed by the English meaning between brackets, but it gave an exciting feel to the stories.

Remember, it's better to read the stories in Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate in the order in which they were included in the book. You might be able to change the order after the first 5 or 6 stories, but as a reader, I recommend you maintain the order.

Unlike previous short story collections, I don't feel like I can rate each of these separately. That said, I found Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate by Bharat Krishnan to be an interesting introduction to and telling of Hindu mythology. Some stories were more exciting than others, some ideas were a bit confusing. But overall, I enjoyed the book and highly recommend it.

Overall rating: 4 stars

Add Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate on Goodreads.

Connect with Bharat Krishnan via Twitter and Facebook.

Buy Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate by Bharat Krishnan via Amazon.

Note: I received a free digital Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) of Love, Pride, Virtue, Fate from its author Bharat Krishnan in exchange for an honest review. This did not in any way affect my review.

Note 2: This book review comes a little later than I had intended.

Takhayyal writing prompt no. 95: Unleash Spring

Welcome back Ladies and Gentlemen, Artists, Poets, Writers, Authors, Dreamers, Friends and Family; Welcome EVERYONE to Nadaness In Motion's MONTHLY picture-prompt writing challenge Takhayyal or Imagine.

Arabic for Imagine, Takhayyal is a challenge for writers of all ages and genres; a place to spark creativity and explore new genres.

While T.S. Eliot believed April was "the cruelest month" I think we can all beg to differ as we shed of the cold months and venture into some warmth. Hmmm?

And for this occasion of warmth and freedom, I'm featuring artwork (inspired by an original image) from my friend Mona Morsy.

What will this image inspire you to write?

Artwork courtesy of Mona Reda Morsy

Your post can be in English or Arabic, prose, poetry, short story, flash fiction; you name it and write it.

General rules:

·        No nudity, violence, and/or abuse.

·        Leave the link to your post in comments below OR post your piece as REPLY to this post

·        Your piece MUST be inspired in some way or other by the above picture

·        Multiple entries allowed

·        It is not required but it is a nice and encouraging gesture to comment on others' pieces.

·        Feel free to add your Twitter handle (@....) so I can tag you in my tweets!

Let's IMAGINE!

Takhayyal writing prompt 94: Wailing Winter Wonderland

Welcome back Ladies and Gentlemen, Artists, Poets, Writers, Authors, Dreamers, Friends and Family; Welcome EVERYONE to Nadaness In Motion's MONTHLY picture-prompt writing challenge Takhayyal or Imagine.

Arabic for Imagine, Takhayyal is a challenge for writers of all ages and genres; a place to spark creativity and explore new genres.

For this month's prompt, I'm borrowing the image from cozy mystery author Amy M. Reade, whom I've previously featured on Nadaness In Motion in a guest post on writing titled "Researching a Book in a Far-Flung Setting."

The image just spoke to me – probably because I've never been in a country with snow before… I think many across the United States have seen storms this year, so this is your opportunity to tell the world about them and shed them off onto the page (and this blog post).

Oh, and the prompt title "Wailing Winter Wonderland" was a line in Kamelot's amazing song "Temples of Old."

So, are you ready for the writing prompt?

Grab your pen and let's WRITE!

Winter Wonderland - Image by Amy M. Reade

Your post can be in English or Arabic, prose, poetry, short story, flash fiction; you name it and write it.

General rules:

·        No nudity, violence, and/or abuse.

·        Leave the link to your post in comments below OR post your piece as REPLY to this post

·        Your piece MUST be inspired in some way or other by the above picture

·        Multiple entries allowed

·        It is not required but it is a nice and encouraging gesture to comment on others' pieces.

·        Feel free to add your Twitter handle (@....) so I can tag you in my tweets!

Let's IMAGINE & WRITE!

Takhayyal Writing Prompt 93: Dark or Magical Love?

Welcome back Ladies and Gentlemen, Artists, Poets, Writers, Authors, Dreamers, Friends and Family; Welcome EVERYONE to Nadaness In Motion's MONTHLY picture-prompt writing challenge Takhayyal/Imagine.

Welcome the month of love and romance, or as many people in Egypt believe… a short month that's heavy on the heart and an overall bad omen and experience… I don't know about you but that sounds like the premises for dark romance writing or horror pieces.

Hence, I think you'll enjoy the Takhayyal writing prompt for February, which gems and precious stones designer and artist Wild Nocturna has kindly agreed to let me use for February.

Photo credit: Wild Nocturna via Instagram

Arabic for Imagine, Takhayyal is a challenge for writers of all ages and genres; a place to spark and inspire creativity and explore new ideas, thoughts, and writing.

Your post can be in English or Arabic (since these are the two languages I can fluently write and read in), prose, poetry, short story, flash fiction; you name it and write it.

Feel free to follow or browse through Wild Nocturna's shop on Instagram. Even if gemstones aren't your thing, you'll probably just love looking at the images she posts.

General rules:

·        No nudity, violence, and/or abuse.

·        Leave the link to your post in comments below OR post your piece as REPLY to this post

·        Your piece MUST be inspired in some way or other by the above picture

·        Multiple entries allowed

·        It is not required but it is a nice and encouraging gesture to comment on others' pieces.

·        Feel free to add your Twitter handle (@....) so I can tag you in my tweets!

Let's IMAGINE!