“Truth must never be immured in silence and Malherbe’s Yassini Girls is able to harvest voices from the past and dares to cast light on hidden carnages to unveil man to man, and unveil man to himself”

Yousef Khanfar- Palestine Prize Foundation

After appearing on the BBC documentary, The Holy Land and Us; Our Untold Stories, Malherbe was inspired to write her own exploration of the unravelling of her family’s past and how it is linked with one of the most devastating massacres in Palestinian history.

Yassini Girls follows her journey to discover her family’s past and how it is inextricably linked to Palestine’s future.

With the ongoing genocide in Gaza, it is more crucial than ever to understand Palestine’s history. Yassini Girls offers an intimate portrayal where the past is not resigned to the history books; it is happening now and for the survivors of it, it is their current lived reality. Yassini Girls offers that window.

Based on a true story, Yassini Girls seeks to understand how the Nakba is lived every single day through the eyes of its survivors. With a Nakba happening right now that we are witnesses of, Yassini Girls reminds us of both historical and generational trauma and the enduring legacy of Palestine through its people.

BLURB

In an ancient house behind stone walls in the Old City of Jerusalem, an unexpected phone call reignites a past Fatima has long buried. Thousands of miles away in the British countryside, a family heirloom buried beneath an attic floor forces Layla to journey into the darkest parts of Palestinian history. Separated by distance and time, the lives of these two women are stitched together in a way neither of them could have imagined.

Yassini Girls is a multi-generational novel that explores trauma, belonging, and preserving tradition against all odds to secure our present. Based on the author’s own experience following a BBC documentary film, Yassini Girls reminds us how our past will always be part of our future.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Shereen Malherbe is an author of multiple novels and a Palestinian children’s series. She is a writer and researcher featured in the Media Diversified expert’s directory, attends literary festivals, media events and is published in the US literary magazine, World Literature Today. Her latest novel, The Land Beneath the Light, and children’s book, The Girl Who Stitched the Stars, were both nominated for the Palestine Book Awards.

GET INVOLVED

For more information and media events on Yassini Girls visit here.

Shereen is available for interviews and book events.

For further information please contact: hello@shereenmalherbe.com

For book orders contact: info@beaconbooks.net

To order: Visit Beacon Books

Author website: http://www.shereenmalherbe.com

BOOK DETAILS

Published: July 2024

Beacon Books

Paperback £9.99

ISBN: 978-1-915025-94-4