The Return: Fathers, Sons, and the Land in Between by Hisham Matar published in 2017 is a heart-wrenching memoir. This book is about a man who longs to find out what happened to his father, Jaballa Matar, a political dissident against the Qaddafi regime in Libya, who apparently disappeared. What the author knew was that his father had been imprisoned in Tripoli for many years. He learned that there had been a prison massacre during which his father may have been killed.
For more than a decade, Hisham was a well-recognized educator and scholar in London and was able to adopt British citizenship, managing to have his father’s disappearance discussed in the English House of Lords. With the fall of the Qaddafi regime and the help of one of the Lords, the author is able to return to his native Libya to make inquiries about his father.
The author’s frustration over a period of thirty years and his relentless efforts provide a tale of filial affection and inspiration that is well worth a read.
