Zaki al 'Ela's story Abu Jaber Goes Back to the Woods is one of the few stories in this collection preoccupied centrally, and vividly, with the daily brutal reality of life under occupation in the largest prison camp in the world. But Gaza is far more than what we see, more than the squalor of the permanent refugee camps, the poverty and indignities of repression. It has a long history and culture, and Atef Abu Saif, as editor of this short collection, has successfully drawn together tales that reflect that depth and the variety and universality of the Gazan experience . His own A Journey in the Opposite Direction beautifully captures a sense of place in a gentle tale of unrequited love, while Nayrouz Qarmout's coming-of-age story, The Sea Cloak, expresses the frustrations and longings of a modern young woman.
