The Pianist from Syria
“It’s not often an audiobook alters your worldview, but this story makes the disaster in Syria vivid and human in a way that headlines never could. Ahmad is a Palestinian growing up in Yarmouk, an “unofficial” Damascus refugee camp where his blind violinist father moves heaven and earth to enable him to become a musician. When, with Yarmouk in rubble and starving under Isis siege, Ahmad begins playing an acoustic piano on the streets and posting the videos on social media, a riveting personal story unexpectedly becomes global. Nezar Alderazi is perfectly cast, his voice warm and trustworthy, his Arabic convincing. He makes you feel that Ahmad is with you, telling you his astonishing story as if he’d never told it to anyone before. Unforgettable.”
AudioFile
Aeham Ahmad was born a second-generation refugee—the son of a blind violinist and carpenter who recognized Aeham’s talent and taught him how to play piano and love music from an early age. When his grandparents and father were forced to flee Israel and seek refuge from the conflict ravaging their home, Aeham’s family built a life in Yarmouk, an unofficial camp to more than 160,000 Palestinian refugees in Damascus.
As a devoted family, they waited for the conflict to be resolved so they could return to their homeland. Their only haven was in music and in each other, especially when another deadly fight overtook their asylum. Forced to leave his family behind, Aeham sought out a safe place for them to call home and build a better life, taking solace in his indestructible familial bond to keep moving forward.
Heart-wrenching yet ultimately optimistic and told in a raw and poignant voice, The Pianist from Syria is a “deeply moving account of one man’s struggle to survive while bringing hope to thousands through his music” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).
Praise