We Could Have Been Friends, My Father and I: A Palestinian Memoir
Finalist for the National Book Award and Los Angeles Times Book Prize
An NPR Best Book of the Year
A subtle psychological portrait of the author’s relationship with his father during the twentieth-century battle for Palestinian human rights.
Aziz Shehadeh was many things: lawyer, activist, and political detainee, he was also the father of bestselling author and activist Raja. In this new and searingly personal memoir, Raja Shehadeh unpicks the snags and complexities of their relationship.
A vocal and fearless opponent, Aziz resists under the British mandatory period, then under Jordan, and, finally, under Israel. As a young man, Raja fails to recognize his father’s courage and, in turn, his father does not appreciate Raja’s own efforts in campaigning for Palestinian human rights. When Aziz is murdered in 1985, it changes Raja irrevocably.
This is not only the story of the battle against the various oppressors of the Palestinians, but a moving portrait of a particular father and son relationship.
An NPR Best Book of the Year
A subtle psychological portrait of the author’s relationship with his father during the twentieth-century battle for Palestinian human rights.
Aziz Shehadeh was many things: lawyer, activist, and political detainee, he was also the father of bestselling author and activist Raja. In this new and searingly personal memoir, Raja Shehadeh unpicks the snags and complexities of their relationship.
A vocal and fearless opponent, Aziz resists under the British mandatory period, then under Jordan, and, finally, under Israel. As a young man, Raja fails to recognize his father’s courage and, in turn, his father does not appreciate Raja’s own efforts in campaigning for Palestinian human rights. When Aziz is murdered in 1985, it changes Raja irrevocably.
This is not only the story of the battle against the various oppressors of the Palestinians, but a moving portrait of a particular father and son relationship.
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Community Reviews
I have a lot of thoughts and feelings after reading this book. There are a lot of parallels Raja paints between himself and his father. And the way he describes his father's life, motivations and actions the reader is certain to see Aziz as an underdog but also a Hero. Until the end Raja's father fought and worked hard for the Palestinian people. It is just unfortunate that Raja didn't understand his father as much as he thought he did before his death. Instead he grew to understand and continue to learn from his father through his papers and work that was left behind.
I would say it was bittersweet but there is nothing "sweet" about this situation. The assassination of Raja's father was never resolved. The apartheid state Israel's government closed the case without investigation. When Raja continued to ask for answers and even to look at the case file, he was denied. And told that the information in the case file (including the suspect) would violate their privacy and the "secrecy of the information".
In my opinion, this means that they know who the killer is and that their identity being revealed could expose a higher up official figure.
It is hard not to take in account all the evidence and information regarding the oppression of Aziz and his human rights efforts during his life. Especially after the Nakba. But at the same time I want express to other potential readers of this book that Aziz worked hard; he was known for his hard work and commitment throughout his life.
Besides being an ode to his father, Raja aims to describe and explain other aspects and influences in his father's work and life.
I would say it was bittersweet but there is nothing "sweet" about this situation. The assassination of Raja's father was never resolved. The apartheid state Israel's government closed the case without investigation. When Raja continued to ask for answers and even to look at the case file, he was denied. And told that the information in the case file (including the suspect) would violate their privacy and the "secrecy of the information".
In my opinion, this means that they know who the killer is and that their identity being revealed could expose a higher up official figure.
It is hard not to take in account all the evidence and information regarding the oppression of Aziz and his human rights efforts during his life. Especially after the Nakba. But at the same time I want express to other potential readers of this book that Aziz worked hard; he was known for his hard work and commitment throughout his life.
Besides being an ode to his father, Raja aims to describe and explain other aspects and influences in his father's work and life.
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