Omani writer Bushra Khalfan has always amazed readers with her ability to lift the curtain on Oman's colourful past.
Al Bagh, which means orchard in Persian, was Bushra’s tool to introduce the Arab reader to the astonishing stories from the ancient and contemporary history of Oman. The tale is told through Rayya and Rashid, siblings, escaping from the oppression of their relatives , leaving their family and home in the interior and coming to Muscat. The cycle of life revolves around Rashid and Rayya to reveal to us many important aspects of the history of Oman, the nature of its people, and what has happened in it over the years.
The novel follows two parallel stories between Rayya’s new life in Muscat and her relationship with the people of society after her marriage to her brother’s friend Ali, and the raging war in which her brother Rashid gets involved after joining Sultan’s armed forces.
The novel covers a long period of time but the wide panorama does not weigh on the reader. The author succeeds in walking the reader through the events and with characters through the major political and social events that they are experiencing.
The novel moves seamlessly between the the past of Rashid and Raya, and the arrival of Zaher and Muzna when circumstances change. The tale then shifts to the tension between the old and new generations.
Through Al Bagh, Bushra genuinely succeeded in representing the Omani man with his toughness, love, and fragility. The novel yearns for the past, but sees it from a wide angle and attempts to explore all possibilities. It also shows how similar the Arabs are in their destinies, their struggles with injustice and aggression, and how they end up in very similar predicaments.
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