This novel of home and homelessness, of exile both physical and psychological, centers on Kimi, a fragile heroine unable to distinguish between her own pain and the pain of others. Kimi is a young Arab student going to Ireland for an education. In "Leaves of Narcissus", Somaya Ramadan interlaces literary motifs - from the popular to the learned, from the folk to the mythic, from the Egyptian to the Irish - and poses questions that hold a mirror to our selves.

Translated by: Marilyn Booth