{"product_id":"guapa-9781590517697","title":"Guapa","description":"\u003cb\u003eA debut novel that tells the story of Rasa, a young gay man coming of age in the Middle East\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSet over the course of twenty-four hours, \u003ci\u003eGuapa\u003c\/i\u003e follows Rasa, a gay man living in an unnamed Arab country, as he tries to carve out a life for himself in the midst of political and social upheaval. Rasa spends his days translating for Western journalists and pining for the nights when he can sneak his lover, Taymour, into his room. One night Rasa's grandmother -- the woman who raised him -- catches them in bed together. The following day Rasa is consumed by the search for his best friend Maj, a fiery activist and drag queen star of the underground bar, Guapa, who has been arrested by the police. Ashamed to go home and face his grandmother, and reeling from the potential loss of the three most important people in his life, Rasa roams the city's slums and prisons, the lavish weddings of the country's elite, and the bars where outcasts and intellectuals drink to a long-lost revolution. Each new encounter leads him closer to confronting his own identity, as he revisits his childhood and probes the secrets that haunt his family. As Rasa confronts the simultaneous collapse of political hope and his closest personal relationships, he is forced to discover the roots of his alienation and try to re-emerge into a society that may never accept him.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Other Press (NY)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/08\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781590517697\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 368\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.90lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.20h x 5.40w x 1.20d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/15\/2016 pg. 26\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/01\/2016 pg. 92\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/18\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 04\/11\/2016\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Saleem Haddad","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45111941497013,"sku":"9781590517697","price":16.11,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_6c168409-7342-43d2-8073-667cad725cdb.jpg?v=1739887684","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/guapa-9781590517697","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}