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HÉLÈNE CARDONA'S award-winning books include Life in Suspension and Dreaming My Animal Selves, and the translations Birnam Wood (José Manuel Cardona), Beyond Elsewhere (Gabriel Arnou-Laujeac), Ce que nous portons (Dorianne Laux), Walt Whitman’s Civil War Writings, and The Abduction (Maram Al-Masri).
Franco-Syrian poet MARAM AL-MASRI'S books include Métropoèmes, Je te regarde, Cerise rouge sur un carrelage blanc, Le Rapt, and Elle va nue la liberté. She was awarded the Prix d’Automne de Poésie de la Société des Gens De Lettres, the Adonis Prize, Il Fiore d’Argento, and the Dante Alighieri Prize.
Reviewed by Luwi Nyakansaila for Readers' Favorite
The Abduction is a collection of poems written by Maram Al-Masri and translated by Hélène Cardona. The poems tell the story of a mother whose son is abducted by her husband and returned after many years. They begin with happy poems about her pregnancy and the bond she shares with her baby boy from birth to his early years. She narrates the events that led to the tragedy and the emotional trauma that followed. She felt guilt and desperation to find her son. She also reminisces about the good times and hopes for the safe return of her baby, but they only unite many years later and try to reconnect in a new world he doesn’t understand. The book concludes with two poems about expressing our emotions through writing.
The Abduction is an emotional and powerful work. The poems are gut-wrenching and paint a vivid picture of the pain and sorrow of being deprived of the right to be a mother and the guilt of not wanting to experience joy or happiness when you do not know how your child is doing. I applaud how these deep and complex thoughts were perfectly captured. The story is based on real-life experiences and raises awareness of the plight of refugees worldwide. Maram Al-Masri is a creative and engaging writer, and I loved how her raw honesty and vulnerability could be felt on every page. Hélène Cardona flawlessly translated the poems from French to English. Get a copy of this book to grasp the story and emotional journey fully.
