The Map of Salt and Stars

This novel by Jennifer Zeynab Joukhadar personalizes a years-long story we have been hearing about on the news--the Syrian civil war and the resulting refugee crisis. Her protagonists are both young teens, one the heroine of a story from the 12th century, Rawiyah, told to the other, Nour, by her father. Rawiyah disguised herself as a boy so she could apprentice herself to a famous map maker (an actual historical figure, al-Idrisi) and see the wider world. She accompanies him and his other apprentice on a journey through often-dangerously disputed territories of the Middle East as he seeks to create the first accurate area map at the behest of his patron, King Roger of Palermo. Nour's father used to tell her the story of Rawiyah in installments when they still lived in New York City--but that was before he died of cancer and her mother moved Nour and her two older sisters back to Syria to be closer to family.  However the Syria her parents knew has gone and been replaced by one experiencing escalating war and destruction. Their home in Homs is bombed and they are forced to flee with nothing but a few dollars. They end up paralleling the route of Rawiyah in their quest to find safety. Both tales are full of hardship, profound love and loss, as well as heroism and determination. The language is beautiful, the thoughts about life often profound-- and that is the one element that does not really seem to fit with the occasionally very juvenile behavior of Nour. Each section of the book that deals with the country they travel through is introduced by a poem in the shape of the country. So worth the read, however, because refugees fleeing inhumane conditions  have become such a big part of our national conversation. Reviews from The New York Times, Kirkus, and The Seattle Times.