Izvještaj s događaja: Mosab Abu Toha, "Stvari koje mi možda nađete skrivene u uhu: Pjesme iz Gaze"
WRITTEN BY: Anja Domazet
After a morning conversation about the ethical challenges of literature in an age of political unrest, Mosab Abu Toha and John Freeman greeted each other in Buybook’s garden and in the evening hours of the same day together with a sizeable audience again talked in more detail about the author's book from 2022, which is thanks to Ulvija Tanović now translated under the title ‘Stvari koje mi možda nađete skrivene u uhu: Pjesme iz Gaze’.
Freeman skillfully led the conversation by prompting the author to explain in some detail his process of choosing the language when writing, since the said collection of poems was originally written in English, not his native Arabic. Explaining his, in the light of recent events, increasingly important role as both writer and reporter, Mosab Abu Toha clarified his very logical approach to the writing process – there is no need to tell his compatriots what is happening in Palestine because they are experiencing it together with him, therefore in the poetry that is closely related to the war and all its tragic consequences, he writes in English, keeping in mind the wider audience he intends to reach. Unfortunately, for the same reason and necessity, he has been writing exclusively in English for months.
He also touched on the title of the book, and in a very poetic, but also simple way – just as he writes – he talked about his hearing loss from childhood, for which, he recounts, he had to go to the doctor and he asked her to leave pleasant sounds like a mother's voice or a bird singing 'once they get into his ear', and to get rid of the buzzing of drones or gunshots. These author's anecdotes set the tone for the rest of the conversation and allowed that part of the audience that may not have been familiar with him before an insight into this book.
He talked about his suffering without excessive pathos, but nevertheless effortlessly captured the audience's full attention, evoking compassion and calling for activism. He does not hold back from sharing personal traumas and stories about his own family, recalling with a smile his father who, in the middle of the war, regularly watered the plants near their now razed home. When asked by Freeman if there is any aspect of the current situation that he feels is not covered in the book since it was originally published two years ago, he replies that the situation is even worse today, symbolically describing 'if this book has one ton of shrapnel, the other one will have two', alluding at the same time, to a new book whose publication in the USA is planned in the fall.
Despite very shocking testimonies, experiences and facts, the author managed to maintain a certain level of optimism during the conversation, assuming that he approached life in the same way. He joked that when and if he dreamed of the war’s ending, he's not sure if he's a writer in that world because he yearns like his father to plant strawberries, have a farm or photograph animals instead of bodies and ruins.
All in all, this was an extremely interesting and relevant conversation that was all the more significant because, with the skillful direction of John Freeman, it was initiated by Mosab Abu Toha. The success of the impression he left on the audience can be measured in the strength of the applause and the length of the line of people who rushed to buy the book after the event.
Photo (c) Milomir Kovačević Strašni
