My Friends

A Novel

By: Hisham Matar

Narrated by: Hisham Matar

Length: 13 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

A “masterly” (The New York Times, Editors’ Choice), “riveting” (The Atlantic) novel of friendship, family, and the unthinkable realities of exile, from the Booker Prize-nominated and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Return.

“A profound celebration of the sustaining power of friendship, of the ways we mold ourselves against the indentations of those few people whom fate presses against us.” (The Washington Post)

A luminous novel of friendship, family, and the unthinkable realities of exile, from the Booker Prize-nominated and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Return.

One evening, as a young boy growing up in Benghazi, Khaled hears a bizarre short story read aloud on the radio, about a man being eaten alive by a cat, and has the sense that his life has been changed forever. Obsessed by the power of those words—and by their enigmatic author, Hosam Zowa—Khaled eventually embarks on a journey that will take him far from home, to pursue a life of the mind at the University of Edinburgh.

There, thrust into an open society that is miles away from the world he knew in Libya, Khaled begins to change. He attends a protest against the Qaddafi regime in London, only to watch it explode into tragedy. In a flash, Khaled finds himself injured, clinging to life, unable to leave Britain, much less return to the country of his birth. To even tell his mother and father back home what he has done, on tapped phone lines, would expose them to danger.

When a chance encounter in a hotel brings Khaled face-to-face with Hosam Zowa, the author of the fateful short story, he is subsumed into the deepest friendship of his life. It is a friendship that not only sustains him but eventually forces him, as the Arab Spring erupts, to confront agonizing tensions between revolution and safety, family and exile, and how to define his own sense of self against those closest to him.

A devastating meditation on friendship and family, and the ways in which time tests—and frays—those bonds, My Friends is an achingly beautiful work of literature by an author working at the peak of his powers.

©2024 Hisham Matar (P)2024 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“It is impossible to describe the profound depth and beauty of this book. My Friends is a breathtaking novel, every page a miracle and an affirmation.” (Maaza Mengiste, author of The Shadow King)

Quality of the writing

Beautifully narrated, powerful subject matter and very beautiful writing.Any book by this author is worth every minute.

Beautifully written

What gorgeous writing and beautiful storytelling. I loved it and will highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates a thought provoking, heart- wrenching story.

Paints a very vivid picture

My Friends has a great deal of interesting, and insightful history about modern Libya and the destruction that Colonial Gaddafi did to the minds, bodies and souls of the Libyan people during his brutal dictatorship. However, the book also examines many other issues in great depth with the authors beautiful prose. The nature of friendship and what makes it last. What being a refugee with no way to go home does to a person’s identity and soul. How the idea of “home” can mean many different things. I thought this was an excellent listen.

Beautifully written

This was an excellent read. I enjoyed every second. As a person living abroad the book really resonated with me in many ways. Will read his memoir next!

One of my favorites ever

I loved the topic, the writing, the reading, the structure, and the authors beautiful mind.

Beautiful prose

The author is extremely gifted in describing and developing characters, emotions, and the human condition. I found myself relistening to many such passages, hoping to absorb their simple cadence and beauty. I kept thinking Wow. .how does he know that?To have a mind that can put words together so perfectly as to touch your soul is such a gift. The story itself is slow in building, so if you like a fast paced, lots of action type of read you won't like this. But if you enjoy a deeply felt story with the characters woven into and around each other, I think you'll enjoy this very much.

A beautiful book

Full of the sense of time passing in the life of the narrator and his friends. A short course in Libyan history and culture given in the best way, through the persona of the narrator. Exile's sadness and security measures by the heart. Wonderful!

Interesting and Complex Protagonist

Wonderful story about the life of a man who left Libya for college and then couldn’t go back for 30+ years because of Muammar Gaddafi and his regime. You get to know Khaled so well and you really like him in his fears and imperfections. He could be anyone.

The soul of friendship

The richest tapestry of lives entwined, of parting without parting, of listening to life and hearing its

Very good story, but best read the old-fashioned way

A beautiful tale of multi-decade friendships that examines the complex feelings that come with being a refugee unable to return home. However, I can’t help but feel as if I would have enjoyed it a lot more had the author not read it himself. I understand that some prefer this format, as it can give the listener a sense of how the author intends the words to be heard. In this case, it’s often difficult to discern who is speaking when especially since the author doesn’t attempt to change his voice at all when another character is speaking. So while the story of oftentimes brilliant, I can’t help but think it would have been much more fulfilling to actually read it in book format.