Journey through the quintessential immigrant's taleRaff Ellis' 'Kisses from a Distance' delves into the lure of migration, a subject that resonates deeply for nearly every Lebanese family today
Lebanese-American author Raff Ellis' "Kisses from a Distance" unfolds like a quintessential immigrant's tale. It follows a Lebanese story that is as relevant and familiar to today's Levantine audience as it would have been 100 years ago. Over the book's 311 pages, which are peppered with relevant and exhaustively researched history, Ellis tugs readers along on a journey down the snow-capped mountains of Lebanon, over land, across seas and oceans and into many strange and distant ports. The story anchors in New York and allows readers to experience the anxious excitement of the wide-eyed immigrant as he steps off the boat and sets foot in a new country for the first time.
The genesis of Ellis' family epic came after the death of his mother, when he discovered more than 200 letters among her personal affects. The letters from friends and family span 60 years, starting in 1925. They begin with traditional Lebanese greetings, and many kisses: "Kisses from a distance ... We kiss your cheeks ... I kiss you many times from this distance," thus inspiring the title of the book.
The real-life dramas unfolding between the pages of these letters, especially in the last half of Ellis' book, make for a very compelling read, turning "Kisses from a Distance" into a veritable page-turner.
The author's visits to Lebanon, his meticulous research and his tenacious quest to trace his family's roots - and those of all the characters involved in this complex story - further enrich the narrative. The well laid-out book, which is Ellis' first full-length effort, is divided into 41 chapters ranging from four to 12 pages.
As expressed in "Kisses from a Distance," the subject of migration resonates deeply for nearly every Lebanese family today, more so than at any time since WWI. Once again, many of Lebanon's youth are seeking work in foreign lands to escape the instability and uncertainty in their home country. And one suspects that when and if they return, they too, like Toufic [the author s father], will be both disappointed and dismissive. -- -- --
Hani Bathish, Beirut Daily StarRaff Ellis' book Kisses From A Distance brought tears to my eyes. It is beautifully written and the story of every family whose members courageously left their homes and families in the Middle East before and at the turn of the 20th century as did my parents. In a way it is every immigrant's story, seeking a better life for their families, enduring incredible hardships. Ellis traced his heritage and found individual greatness and kindness. I wish there would be less demonization of the Arab world today and more understanding of its great people. I know Ellis' book will help that bridge. -- -- --
Helen Thomas, Hearst Newspapers columnistBy describing the odyssey of his Lebanese immigrant forebears to the United States in the early twentieth century, Raff Ellis has prefigured the saga of all immigrants of that era and thereafter. Change the name of the country of origin, or the date, or the variety of hardships in steerage encountered en route or the societal prejudices that were waiting in America, and you have what every immigrant of those years would instantly recognize. Regardless, Ellis has created not an exercise in nostalgia but a serious and disciplined historical study.
This book has something for all whose personal or family history includes immigration. And, since we are a nation of immigrants, this includes all of us. -- -- --
Dr. Sam Hazo, International Poetry Forum, Pittsburgh
Cune Press and its editors literally fell in love with Kisses from a Distance," and that is why we took it on. We value the book highly and feel it is among the very best we have published. The writing is at the very top in quality and Cune has no hesitation in boasting about this book to all its friends around the world. This book is not the normal nostalgic reminiscences of a memoir writer but an important historical document told in an engaging non-historical style. There are no dry recitations of dates and events but instead an interestingly woven tale of events as lived by the principal characters in the story. The reader is taken on a rewarding journey that has taken advantage of rare documents to relate the story in the characters' own words. Cune Press is proud to add Kisses from a Distance to its Bridge Between cultures Series, which include:
The Road from Damascus: A Journey Through Syria
Steel & Silk: Men and Women Who Shaped Syria 1900 - 2000
A Pen of Damascus Steel: Political Cartoons of an Arab Master Scott C. Davis, Publisher Cune Press Seattle, Wash.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
