The Night Counter

I was initially attracted to the cover, but when I started reading this, I couldn't stop. It's a very funny and very sad look at family tales and love stories--with the ever immortal and lovely Scherherzade of the 1001 Nights coming to modern Los Angeles to the crazy, mixed up world of an 85-year old lady counting down the last days of her life as she decides how to leave things with the four generations of her family now rooted in America. Told from several viewpoints, including that of a bumbling FBI agent, this is a gem of summer read or a rainy afternoon read--or just something to keep on hand because it's humanity will lift your spirits

The Night Counter by Alia Yunis is a highly worthy read. The main character, Fatima Abdullah, is an 85 year old Arab American immigrant who spent the majority of her life in Detroit, Michigan. When we meet her, she is in Los Angeles where she has lived with her grandson for over three years and is visited nightly by the fabled Scheherazade. The story opens on the 992nd night of Scheherazade's visits and progresses through the 1,001st night when Fatima hopes to learn her own fate. Along the way, we learn about Fatima's marriages, her childhood home in Lebanon and her offspring. As an added bonus, we sit in with two FBI agents eager to exercise The Patriot Act. The story is told third person yet the perspective varies slightly depending on the highlighted character. As a woman, I can sympathize with Fatima's joys and sacrifices in her life. As an white American, I was able to look through a different set of eyes at the American culture as well as the false assumptions and prejudices generalized to a whole group of people, especially since 9/11. And regardless of gender or ethnicity, I was reminded of the leaps of logic we make based on our own beliefs and outside influence. I enjoyed the storytelling - both humorous and solemn. And as a student of the human condition, I appreciate the added perspective to my worldview. Now that I'm done with The Night Counter, I miss Fatima - and Scheherazade.

A delightful read, Yunis takes us between time and cultures, generations and within a family. Rather than summarize the narrative, I will simply say this was the highlight of my summer reads. A breath of fresh of air. Moving, clever and a joy to read, I completed this modern 1001 nights in only a few days and look forward to author's next work. This story is for all nationalities that have a complex and diverse family but wouldn't have it any other way.

Lebanese immigrant Fatima Abdullah is dying, but shows no interest in a reconciliation with her estranged husband Ibraham or for that matter with her children sprawled all over the country as she prefers to ignore their issues. She has no desire to see any of her ten offspring; their children except Amir or even her pregnant great-granddaughter; they did not want to hear her prattle about her 1001 Arabian Nights countdown. Instead she stays with her gay grandson Amir, who welcomes her insanity in Los Angeles as an actor who knows his town is filled with crazies so his attitude is why not one more with his blood. For the last 992 nights ever since Scheherazade visited her demanding she tells her stories, Fatima has complied. When her tales end, Scheherazade insists so does her life; as happens with everyone. With nine to go, the octogenarian expects to be dead next week even as Ibraham wants to be there for her; as does the FBI who believe the Abdullah family are a sleeper terrorist cell because of Amir's name and his association with a former lover under federal surveillance due to his former lover Amir being under federal surveillance. This is a terrific tale that keeps the audience wondering whether Fatima suffers from dementia or is a clever modern day fantasy. Fatima obviously owns the fast-paced novel as she begins her final countdown to what she expects is her death. Her family especially heartbroken Amir, whose lover dumped him during the countdown, provide solid support as all of them except her host assumes she is certifiable; whereas her host thinks she is an eccentric lovable kook. Sherazade plays a key role, but like the Memorex commercial one will ponder is she real or imagined as does the circular logical FBI finding perceived terrorists under any Arab sounding rock. Alia Yunis provides a powerful modern day family thriller with the twist of the FBI "interrogates" Sherazade. Harriet Klausner

Scheherazade could learn a thing or two about storytelling from Alia Yunis, who uses the 1001 Nights conceit to tell the tale of Fatima Abdullah, an 85-year-old matriarch who trades beauty tips with Scheherazade as she counts down the nights she thinks she has left to live. Both Fatima and Scheherazade display a lot of L.A. lip, which is not surprising given that Yunis is a filmmaker from L.A. Fatima, a purple-haired Detroit Tigers fan, is a character hard to beat, but she gets competition from her highly dysfunctional family. How glad I was that I didn't have to wait 1001 nights to hear all their stories. But The Night Counter is more than a collection of wonderfully zany characters. It's also a cautionary tale about how living in the past can keep you from living in the present and how little families understand each other.