Billed as a historical romance. I was hoping to get more "historical" and less romance, but twas not the case The story takes place in Baghdad in the 1950's, a time of the assassination of the royal family as well as the end of British "occupation." About the content: this was the best part of the book, the stories of the daily life, gardens, political situations, etc. About the writing: left much to be desired. The sentences were short and stilted. This may be due to translation. I listened to this on audio and the reader was very monotone. This was a short novel of 226 pages, so it was a quick read. (5 hours 21 mins) ( )

Iraq, historical-places-events, historical-romance, memoir

A beautiful tale of love, discrimination, obsession, and a city and country that have suffered much in the last fifty odd years. The bookseller in Baghdad lives in precarious times, and while unhappily examining a book he finds that its innards have been replaced by a locket and the personal journal of a man who identifies himself as the Gardener of Baghdad. This is the love story that is interrupted by discrimination and revolution. The obsession is that of the bookseller who is compelled to read it and try to find out what happened after its abrupt end over fifty years ago.
Randal Schaffer gives a moving audio performance as narrator.
I requested and received a free audio copy via AudioBookBOOM, and then discovered an ebook copy in my TBR pile from a year ago! ( )

Baghdad, city of romance.
This book was an interesting balance between the violent Baghdad of today and the genteel place of luxury gardens that it once was.

Current day Adnan struggles to run his bookshop amongst bombings, terror and intermittent electricity. His wife is desperate to leave the city, but Adnan is attached to the shop, which he inherited from his father. Although he has reluctantly agreed to leave, he is still nostalgically pottering around, when he comes across an old handwritten memoir hidden on shelves right at the back.
It immediately grabs his attention and he spends several nights ensconced in the shop, reading by candlelight.

The manuscript details the story of Ali, a young farmer who branches out into gardening and makes quite a name for himself in 50's Baghdad. Unfortunately he falls in love with a young lady whom he is prohibited from marrying. When the narrative of the sad love story comes to a sudden end, Adnan uses his contacts to try and find out what happened - and he takes us with him; we too are longing to know how the story ends.

This book has a beautiful cover, which appealed to me immediately. There is some fairly floral language, but this is not inappropriate when reading a book set in the Middle East. The story is told in an interesting way, using Adnan's bookshop and later his contacts. It is also well read in the audiobook version, by Randal Schaffer.

Ahmad Ardalan has other books set in Iraq and I am hoping that it won't be too long before these are also available as audiobooks. ( )

This is a book for those who have had the experience of living in an unsettled world and have felt the need to relocate to a safer on.Set in the Middle East, specifically Iraq, this is a story that encapsulates a cross cultural love story amidst the chaos that accompanies political regime change. It is a straight forward narrative; there is no subtlety or nuanced meaning.

The ending is not a surprise. Readers who share experiences of forced resettlement, whether from Iraq, Syria, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, the Palestinian territories, (the list, unfortunately, could go on forever) will view this story as familiar and typical. The unsurprising ending can be viewed positively or negatively (up to you, reader). I would use this book in an English as a Second Language class because it can be appreciated on a literal, surface level. ( )

A sentimental and touching story told in a style like that of a fable. Unfortunately it lacks that touch of artistry in both content and technique to make it a good book. 21 Oct 2015. ( )