By Sara Zantout
Until I Held You Again is a poignant and lyrical short story told in ten powerful heartbeats. This story traces a mother’s emotional journey through love and loss—revealing how motherhood is shaped, tested, and redefined through moments of deep vulnerability in a contradiction-filled city of Beirut where beauty and grief coexist.
Written by Lebanese author Sara Zantout, this poetic short story offers an intimate reflection on what it means to be a woman navigating personal and cultural memory in a city that mirrors both strength and sorrow.
Themes Explored
- Motherhood as transformation and endurance
- Memory’s fragility and power
- Identity shaped by emotional upheaval
- Beirut’s fractured beauty: a living metaphor
Purpose of the Book
To explore how motherhood, memory, and identity are shaped by emotional complexity—especially in a Middle Eastern setting. It pays tribute to women who hold themselves together amid contradictions, celebrating both quiet strength and vulnerability.
To explore how motherhood, memory, and identity are shaped in the emotional landscape of the Middle East. A tribute to women who hold themselves together in fractured worlds where quiet strength, vulnerability, and love become acts of power.
Why You Should Read It
Perfect for readers who appreciate:
- Middle Eastern women’s fiction
- Stories of motherhood and memory
- Emotional fiction of resilience and hope
- Poetic, literary reflections on love, identity, and strength
About the Author: Sara Zantout
Sara Zantout is a Lebanese writer and journalist based in Dubai. Drawing on extensive experience in writing and storytelling, she brings emotional depth and lyrical style to her literary work, Until I Held You Again.
What Makes This Book Special
- Authentic Middle Eastern female perspective
- Ten heartbeats of raw emotional narrative
- Compact, poetic short-story format
- Beirut’s vibrant, conflicted culture
- Nuanced portrayal of motherhood and identity
Perfect For Fans Of
- Elif Shafak
- Hala Alyan
- Nawal El Saadawi
- Ghada Al Saman
Contemporary Arab Women’s Literature
Bold, lyrical stories of passion, identity, and Middle Eastern womanhood.
Explore Sara Zantout’s work at sarazantout.com
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Follow on Instagram: @sara.zantout
