A Woman in the Crossfire

A well-known novelist and journalist from the coastal city of Jableh, Samar Yazbek witnessed firsthand and actively participated in the first four months of the Syrian intifada. Throughout she kept a diary of personal reflections. Because of outspoken views published in print, online, and on Facebook, Yazbek quickly attracted the attention and fury of the regime, as vicious rumors spread about her disloyalty to the homeland and the Alawite community from which she comes. This narrative weaves together her struggle to protect herself and her young daughter after she is forced from her home into living on the run, detained multiple times, and eventually flees to Europe.

Filled with exhilarating hope and horrifying atrocities, A Woman in the Crossfire offers us a wholly unique perspective on the Syrian uprising. Yazbek's is a modest yet powerful testament to the strength and commitment of countless unnamed individual Syrians who dream of bringing an end to a...