Amman – Writer and academic Dr. Saleh Abu Asbah launched his novel "Stars and Their Companions" on Wednesday evening at an event organized by the Jordanian Critics Association, held at the headquarters of the Jordanian Writers Association in Amman.
اضافة اعلان
The novel, which spans 180 pages in a medium format, sheds light on several significant concerns related to literature connected to Palestine, notably the debate over life and death, and the presence of martyrdom and sacrifice in the pursuit of a better life for future generations.
In his creative testimony during the launch event, which was hosted by writer Dr. Youssef Rababeh, Abu Asbah stated: "In 'Stars and Their Companions,' I narrate the nature of intertwined relationships among characters united by hope, pain, and dreams. Each of these characters represents a unique form of giving."
Abu Asbah then questioned, "Can I, as I tell the story, be detached from emotion, or remain objective? It’s impossible, as I am part of the story, not distant from its details."
In his critical perspective on the novel, critic Dr. Mohammed Obeidallah explained that "Stars and Their Companions" represents, in its entirety, a chapter of the Palestinian community's experience in its diaspora, resilience, and resistance to dissolution and oblivion. Thus, the novel addresses the issue of identity and the attempts to erase and suppress it, calling for its preservation in all its inherited forms and the necessity of passing it on to new generations.
He continued, "The novel focuses on the characters, with its main title and subtitles connected to their names. This emphasis is a powerful implicit reference to the place of the individual in the journey of the Palestinian experience. If the new place, the place of diaspora, has become a blurred and alienating space, the individual is the one who remains, the one relied upon to restore the original place—homeland—in its simple and complex meanings, which cannot be compromised or replaced, as this novel proves, and as is the reality of the overall journey of the Palestinian people."
