Sea Prayer is more than just a book. It's a poem, it's a hope, it's letter between father and son. It's a father’s prayer for his son, for his journey to a brighter land away from the war-torn life he has only known.
Khaled Hosseini dedicated this book to Alan Kurdi, a three-year-old Syrian boy who is believed to have drowned as his family fled their country, but it is also dedicated to all those who chose to brave their lives for a better land, future and life.
The father tells his son of a time when he and his brother would spend peaceful and joyful summers at their grandfather's farm. He tells how the son would take walks with his mother through the souks and shares his sadness that not only will his son not remember, but he won't get to create more memories as he once did in the same town. He then comes to their frightful and terrifying experience as war hit their country and how his son's memories of their home will also be filled with fear. The father then focuses on the journey ahead and the dangers that sea also poses to them, bringing attention to the painful truth that some have to choose a lesser danger to flee a worse danger.
This book is less than 50 pages with minimal writing on each page, but the power and gut-wrenching truth written in this prose will leave you with many emotions to process. It will leave you feeling like someone has offered you a warm cup of hot chocolate and then deliberately spilled it on you too.
This book is also illustrated by Dan Williams and how beautifully illustrated it is. Williams truly captures the essence of Hosseini's words, the beauty, the darkness, the fear and the hope. The illustrations were the perfect accompaniment to this short poem and I couldn't imagine how better to bring the words to life.
'This book is dedicated to the thousands of refugees who have perished at sea fleeing war and persecution.'
I would truly recommend this book to everyone, and I would ask that you please buy yourself a copy, instead of borrowing it. The publisher of the book donates a portion of the price to The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and Hosseini also donates his author proceeds to the UNHCR.
There are many families torn apart by war, but even more are torn apart as they seek safer pastures. Sea Prayer is a stunningly poignant book which we should all read. Khaled Hosseini is brilliant at making the reader feel for his characters and bring light to the realities people face in war-torn nations.
Completed on: Thursday 11th November 2021
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