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My Friends

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My Friends

By: Hisham Matar
Narrated by: Hisham Matar
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

A masterful, intensely moving novel about three friends living in political exile and the emotional homeland that deep friendships can provide - from the Booker-shortlisted, Pulitzer prize-winning author of THE RETURN

Khaled and Mustafa meet at university in Edinburgh: two Libyan eighteen-year-olds expecting to return home after their studies. In a moment of recklessness and courage, they travel to London to join a demonstration in front of the Libyan embassy. When government officials open fire on protestors in broad daylight, both friends are wounded, and their lives forever changed.

Over the years that follow, Khaled, Mustafa and their friend Hosam, a writer, are bound together by their shared history. If friendship is a space to inhabit, theirs becomes small and inhospitable when a revolution in Libya forces them to choose between the lives they have created in London and the lives they left behind.

©2024 Hisham Matar (P)2024 Penguin Audio Fiction Friendship Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Heartfelt Inspiring Tear-jerking Thought-Provoking England Africa

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Critic reviews

I have always admired Matar's tender and compassionate but equally strong and compelling voice (Elif Shafak)
My Friends is Matar's most political novel, but also an intimate meditation on friendship and love and everything in between. It is deeply affecting, generous and wise, and all these virtues come in writing of extraordinary elegance, with one of those voices that you want to listen to for the rest of your life. (Juan Gabriel Vásquez)
All stars
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Really moving, mellifluous and melancholic. I will miss Khaled and his friends! A privilege to immerse myself in this story.

Wonderful writing

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I loved the book, beautifully and sensitively written, gives an insight into the plight of those of different cultures and countries and what they endure whilst living in exile.

The wonderful poetic voice of the narrator

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A beautifully crafted and authentic book about the sorrow of exile and the complexity of friendship.

A Beautiful Book

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Writes with such detail. It feels very intimate. Later is an excellent writer, and his delivery is exactly what you need.

Intricate and detailed

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Masterly writing and a poignant backdrop of fact which made it all the more vivid.

Beautifully read

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Beautifully read, a thoughtful and evocative account of friendship and excile. The story takes you through nearly 30 years and would highly recommend

Evocative account of friendship

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Best book I’ve listened to this year. The warmth of the voice of the author makes it a pleasure to listen to. the story is so moving and gave words to experiences me and people close to me have had but never found words for. I now want to buy the actual book because of so many passages I’d underline to come back to. For example - ‘At first I thought that to be a parent is to be an idealist. Then I learned that to be a parent you have to be continually coming up against everything that is not ideal about you.’ Cannot recommend this book highly enough.

The story about friendship family exile and so much more

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This book will be one of my favourites for many reasons ,for as long as it resonates with me .From the outset I found the writer and narrator to be convincing and his theme thoroughly accessible .i was moved to tears by his lyrical intimacy ,on his experiences with friends and family.As a narrator his story is told beautifully .His intimate delivery drew me into his journey and cast a spell .

Smooth as silk

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A beautiful story, superbly spoken.
A book filled with generosity, tenderness and to be remembered as one of Hisham Matars most moving novels.

Superb

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I liked the narrators performance but at times hard to know which character is speaking. I remember the Libyan embassy siege and the death of Qaddafi well but have tended to block some of the other things that have happened since. That’s why I think this is a very important book that should win the Booker. I felt empathy for the characters and could see how easy it was to be swept away by patriotism.

History lesson

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