The Diaries of Um Lhaf
(يومياّت "إمّ لحاف)
The Lebanese Story : Book No. 6
Author : Hanna El-Feghaly
Study and Presentation: Dr. Salim Khalil Kahwaji
Year : 2014
ISBN: 978-9953-562-21-7
This story represents a dark era in the history of Lebanon and depicts the deteriorating political and social reality during World War I, particularly famine and Turkish tyranny and the resulting impact on people’s ethics and attitudes. It also deals with administrative and legal affairs, besides the prevalence of slander and all kinds of corruption. This reality is reflected through the narration of “Um Lhaf” of her biography since the time she grew up in her mother’s “cabin” where the Turkish soldiers used to visit her frequently as the days passed until she became a spy for Jamal Basha. The story also illustrates the following phase during which “Um Lhaf” was narrating her story, the post-war Beirut. The story is narrated in the colloquial Lebanese language to which the author added more fluency, realism and vivacity.