The Story
In a tiny Beirut apartment, sixty-three-year-old Raja and his mother live side by side. A beloved high school philosophy teacher and āthe neighbourhood homosexual,ā Raja relishes books, meditative walks, order, and solitude. Zalfa, his octogenarian mother, views her sonās desire for privacy as a personal affront. She demands to know every detail of Rajaās work life and love life, boundaries be damned.
When Raja receives an invite to an all-expenses-paid writing residency in America, the timing couldnāt be better. It arrives on the heels of a series of personal and national disasters that have left Raja longing for peace and quiet away from his mother and the heartache of Lebanon. But what at first seems a stroke of good fortune soon leads Raja to recount and relive the very disasters and past betrayals he wishes to forget.
Told in Rajaās irresistible and wickedly funny voice, the novel dances across six decades to tell the unforgettable story of a singular life and its absurditiesāa tale of mistakes, self-discovery, trauma, and maybe even forgiveness. Above all,Ā The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother)Ā is a wildly unique and sparkling celebration of love.
Description
In a tiny Beirut apartment, sixty-three-year-old Raja and his mother live side by side. A beloved high school philosophy teacher and āthe neighbourhood homosexual,ā Raja relishes books, meditative walks, order, and solitude. Zalfa, his octogenarian mother, views her sonās desire for privacy as a personal affront. She demands to know every detail of Rajaās work life and love life, boundaries be damned.
When Raja receives an invite to an all-expenses-paid writing residency in America, the timing couldnāt be better. It arrives on the heels of a series of personal and national disasters that have left Raja longing for peace and quiet away from his mother and the heartache of Lebanon. But what at first seems a stroke of good fortune soon leads Raja to recount and relive the very disasters and past betrayals he wishes to forget.
Told in Rajaās irresistible and wickedly funny voice, the novel dances across six decades to tell the unforgettable story of a singular life and its absurditiesāa tale of mistakes, self-discovery, trauma, and maybe even forgiveness. Above all,Ā The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother)Ā is a wildly unique and sparkling celebration of love.
