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Sometimes you walk two steps and find yourself
two alleys away, two gates away,
two hills away, two seas away,
two continents away,
or seven heavens away.
In this taut and heartbreaking debut novel, a Palestinian teenager comes of age amid escalating violence in Jerusalem. After their friend Hassan is killed by an Israeli, Aziz and Mustafa are shaken to their core, drawn into the orbit of Hassan's father — a respected community leader known for his charity and fiery speeches — as they grapple with grief, guilt, and an uncertain future. As Aziz's forbidden feelings for Dafna, a Jewish girl, deepen and his mother searches for a way to secure his safety, he's forced to confront painful truths about loss, survival, and what it means to find hope amid the ruins.
“Gritty and nuanced … An auspicious first outing.” — Publishers Weekly
“In his gripping debut novel, Ashraf Zaghal spins a trying coming of age story that is unwavering and blunt in its depictions of life within an increasingly hostile climate … A harrowing but deeply human story of loss, survival, community and imperfect love.” — Maisonneuve
“An assured and superbly crafted novel.” — California Review of Books
“The strength of this novel is its complexity, its Mille-feuille-layers of morality and relationships … [Seven Heavens Away] lingers on the brain for a long time after it’s finished.” — The Miramichi Reader
"Zaghal skilfully weaves together the various storylines while entrancing the reader with the gloriously depicted setting." — Winnipeg Free Press
“[Seven Heavens Away] expertly weaves Aziz’s perspective as a young Palestinian boy in East Jerusalem with [the reality of occupation]” — Toronto Review
“Seven Heavens Away is a story of resistance … Zaghal invites us into Aziz’s world, shows us what he’s up against, and elicits our compassion for a young man finding his way against all odds.” — The British Columbia Review
“Intense and gripping debut novel.” — Send My Love to Anyone Blog