After the Last Sky [Paperback]

Edward W. Said (Author), Jean Mohr (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0231114494 | ISBN-13: 978-0231114493 | Publication Date: September 15, 1998 0

A searing portrait of Palestinian life and identity that is at once an exploration of Edward Said's unclaimable past and a testimony to the lives of those living in exile.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The theme of this book is exile, expressed through the striking photographs of a people held in a state of transience and impermanence. While the photographs rivet the reader's attention, Said (English and Comparative Literature, Columbia) puts their pain and dislocation into words. The photos show the Palestinians within a landscape, but somehow, isolated, reflecting Said's conclusion that "exile is a series of portraits, without names, without contexts." What is the Palestinian contexthow can Palestinians even know they existwhen the past decades have seen only transition, a loss of boundaries, a denial of identities? The interplay of text and photos makes a powerful statement and reflects Said's poetic skills. Highly recommended for readers seeking the faces and feelings behind the headlines. Elizabeth R. Hayford, President, Associated Colls. of the Midwest, Chicago
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

When Said shows us the Palestinian experience min al-dakhil, from the inside, he means not the inside of the place, but the inside of the mind. Palestine becomes a state of mind. And that is what makes the book so exceptional. It is an extended voyage through the mind of exile.

(The Nation )

The power and magic of [Said and Mohr's] collective statement lies in this----no matter how displaced or dispossessed, a decisive border separates the native and the tourist.

(Jerusalem Post )

A very personal text, and a very moving one, about an internal struggle: the anguish of living with displacement, with exile.... The most beautiful piece of prose... about what it means to be a Palestinian.

(The Guardian )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (September 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231114494
• ISBN-13: 978-0231114493
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #568,695 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great reading, wonderful photography, December 28, 1998

By 

LOODY (Boston) - See all my reviews

This review is from: After the Last Sky (Paperback)

This book is a must-see/read for anybody interested in a genuine solution to the pressing problems in Palestine. Edward Said's poignant descriptions of both Palestinian woes and the fight to retain identity force one either to reeavaluate his or her notions of the Palestinians (if one is inclined to take Western propaganda for granted), or to further support the Palestinian right to live with increased fervor and empathy. If the text is not given a chance, then the photos pose an even greater challenge: Should we finally all accept responsibility for the faltering, ludicrous "peace process" in the Middle East?

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Poetic essay, September 22, 2000

By 

Erika Mitchell (E. Calais, VT USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: After the Last Sky (Paperback)

This book consists of a long personal essay about Palestinian identity which follows the author's thoughts as he reacts to a series of photographs (mostly from 1979) taken by Jean Mohr. It is not a memoir, although the author relates a few early memories of his parents' lives in Palestine and of the arrival of Palestinian refugees in Cairo, where he was living with his family 1948. Mostly, the book focuses on the injustice of a people whose homeland has been violently take away and what it means to be a nation in exile. The photographs are very poignant; it would have been nice to see them in greater detail, but most of them are rather small to accommodate the long text.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Visual Poetry, August 9, 2003

By 

Giant Panda (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: After the Last Sky (Paperback)

Initially, I did not think that a book written in the mid-1980s would be a useful in the fast-changing topic of the Middle East. This was written before the Oslo peace process and before the first Palestinian Intifada, remember. I was therefore pleasantly surprised to find this gem in the library. Visual poetry is the best description I can think of - beautiful photos from the lens of the Swiss master Jean Mohr document Palestinian reality on every page. The photographic narrative is intertwined with a poetic elaboration by Edward Said (in my opinion the best I've seen of his writing). So much information is there, but also so much is left unsaid - for us readers to think about and visualize. Though some of the events in Middle East history may appear absurd, after reading this book it all starts to fit together and make sense. Even events taking place afterwards like the Intifada makes sense after understand the context the this book paints with such wonderful clarity. More books like this are desperately needed!