A finalist for the 2021 International Prize for Arabic Fiction, a compelling saga of two families that illuminates the lives of women in modern Tunisia

Tunisia, 1930s. Against the backdrop of a country in turmoil, in search of its identity, the lives and destinies of the members of two important upper-class families of Tunis intertwine: the Ennaifer family, with a rigidly conservative and patriarchal mentality, and the Rassaa, open-minded and progressive. 

One terrible night in December 1935, the destiny of both families changes forever when Zbaida Ali Rassaa, the young wife of Mohsen Ennaifer, is accused of having had a clandestine love affair with Tahar Haddad, an intellectual of humble origins known for his union activism and support for women’s rights. The events of that fateful night are told by eleven different narrators, members of the two families, who recall them in different historical moments, from the 1940s to the present day. The result is a complex mosaic of secrets, memories, accusations, regrets, and emotions, taking the reader on an exciting journey through the stories of individuals caught up in the upheavals of history.  

Amira Ghenim
Amira Ghenim is a Tunisian writer and academic, born in 1978. She teaches Linguistics and Translation at Tunis University.  Her novel The Yellow Dossier won the 2020 Sheikh Rashid Bin Hamad Prize. A Calamity of Noble Houses was published in 2020. 

• Jan 14 2025
  “A kaleidoscopic portrait of Tunisian history.”
  — The New York Times Book Review
• Dec 1 2024
  ★ “A stirring, engrossing tale.”
  — Kirkus Reviews
• Nov 6 2024
  “Readers will be transported.”
  — Publishers Weekly