I loved this book!Īlice Holtzman is a 44-year-old widow that works at a county office in a small town. Each is mired in unhappiness and stress and choices they have made. They each have something to offer in the gradual changing of each character’s life.Īnd for the better. It was one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read.Īnother book I could not put down! This is the sweetest story of three unlikely people that come together in the oddest way.Īnd it works.

What I had to keep wondering as I turned each page… who is going to survive this? Will Delan choose to stay in his homeland and send Olivia back to the states? Who in his family can be trusted? Oh my…read this book. The photographs that Olivia takes will also become an important part of the way events play out. This rescue will play a significant role later in the book. The meal is cut short (for reasons I will not disclose) and as they travel back home they rescue a man that is in danger. They go to eat in a restaurant that Delan has dreamed of visiting again. The sound of an airplane overhead makes the family all pause and wait. Everything combined with the unfazed tick of the clock.”Īfter arriving in the home of Delan’s parents Olivia quickly learns of the daily trials the family faces. This is what she’s trying to reconcile: blinks of destruction amid beauty. The world is gorgeous and unruffled and unnoticing. Somehow it feels as though life is flaunting its continuation. In 19 over 600 Kurdish villages were destroyed by Iraq.īased on the events taking place in the Kurdish region, a trip to his homeland was a dangerous undertaking for Delan and Olivia. In the 1970s Iraq and the Kurds were involved in extreme conflicts which resulted in the ethnic cleansing of thousands of Kurds. The region is bordered by Turkey, Iran, and Iraq. The Kurds have a distinct culture and yet no home country. It is a geographical region for the Kurdish people. If you do not know, here is a little background- Kurdistan is not a country. This is a wedding he wants to attend- in Kurdistan where he is from. Then Delan hears from family that his dear cousin is getting married. Olivia moves into the house and eventually she and Delan begin a relationship. He has told her he “will be the one with a slice of pie and two forks.” Now, I know what you are thinking- this is a chick-book based on that scenario. Olivia answers the ad and meets him in a cafe. Men get those jobs.ĭelan is a struggling actor that lives in a house with roommates and he places an ad for a empty spot in the house. However, her way is blocked by the office politics. She loves photography and hopes to be a photojournalist.

Olivia is a 25 year-old working at a newspaper office. You will pick up the book and lay it down quickly so as not to finish too soon.įive stars. This will likely be my favorite book of this year.

Take What You Can Carry by Gian Sardar