When the Mountains are Scattered as Dust
Fatima Martin
- WHEN
- THE
- MOUNTAINS
- ARE
- SCATTERED
- AS
- DUST
- is
- Fatima's
- first
- novel.
- It
- won
- the
- Muslim
- Writers'
- Awards
- in
- 2008,
- and
- has
- been
- published
- in
- Turkish
- as
- Hakikati
- Arayan
- Kadin
- in
- 2011.
- It
- is
- not
- her
- autobiography
- but
- it
- reflects
- what
- she
- knows,
- the
- emotional
- turmoil
- of
- a
- spiritual
- search,
- the
- Vienna
- and
- Jerusalem
- of
- the
- 80s,
- and
- the
- Islam
- that
- doesn't
- make
- the
- headlines,
- but
- is
- the
- essence
- of
- the
- teachings
- of
- the
- Qur'an;
- an
- Islam
- based
- on
- the
- love
- of
- God
- and
- His
- messenger
- and
- the
- earnest
- yearning
- to
- lead
- a
- life
- devoted
- to
- God
- and
- to
- carry
- His
- message
- of
- love
- and
- peace
- and
- unity.Lena
- is
- a
- 30
- year-old
- PhD
- student
- in
- Vienna
- during
- the
- 1980s,
- of
- working
- class
- roots,
- addicted
- to
- dope
- and
- unsuitable
- men.
- She
- feels
- an
- exile
- in
- her
- own
- country,
- not
- able
- to
- find
- her
- place
- within
- the
- Catholic
- Church
- nor
- academia,
- nor
- amongst
- the
- drifters
- and
- dreamers
- who
- surround
- her.When
- she
- falls
- in
- love
- with
- Aziz,
- a
- Palestinian
- translator
- and
- Muslim,
- she
- finds
- to
- her
- astonishment
- that
- she
- feels
- at
- home
- in
- his
- culture.
- Her
- experience
- of
- Islam
- deepens
- during
- a
- research
- year
- in
- Istanbul.
- Ultimately
- Aziz
- and
- Lena
- are
- catalysts
- for
- each
- other
- to
- be
- true
- to
- themselves
- and
- choose
- the
- lives
- they
- want
- to
- lead,
- accepting
- that
- this
- means
- leaving
- the
- boundaries
- of
- their
- respective
- cultures
- and
- embracing
- the
- unknown
- yet
- familiar other.
