The Syrian Ladies Benevolent Society

A fantastic collection of interconnected short stories focused on a century and a half of Arab women's voices inspired by the author's own ancestors' deep roots in Montreal. A family tree fashioned backwards from a seed of a story published nearly 20 years ago. From the incredible image of the red glow emanating from a tiny body wrapped in cloth being lowered into the earth, embers burning in the heart's cavity of the first chapter — the stories move through time, each filled with delightful details. There's a pearl necklace peeking above a collar, an incriminating hotel bottle opener, a still warm lemon cake. It's a jewel of a collection and just a lovely debut.