The Beekeeper of Aleppo

A Novel

By: Christy Lefteri

Narrated by: Art Malik

Length: 8 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

This unforgettable novel puts human faces on the Syrian war with the immigrant story of a beekeeper, his wife, and the triumph of spirit when the world becomes unrecognizable.

"A beautifully crafted novel of international significance that has the capacity to have us open our eyes and see." (Heather Morris, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz)

• Winner of the Aspen Words Literary Prize
• Finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize
• Named One of the Best Books of the Year by Real Simple

Nuri is a beekeeper, and Afra, his wife, is an artist. Mornings, Nuri rises early to hear the call to prayer before driving to his hives in the countryside. On weekends, Afra sells her colorful landscape paintings at the open-air market. They live a simple life, rich in family and friends, in the hills of the beautiful Syrian city of Aleppo - until the unthinkable happens. When all they love is destroyed by war, Nuri knows they have no choice except to leave their home. But escaping Syria will be no easy task: Afra has lost her sight, leaving Nuri to navigate her grief as well as a perilous journey through Turkey and Greece toward an uncertain future in Britain.

Nuri is sustained only by the knowledge that waiting for them is his cousin, Mustafa, who has started an apiary in Yorkshire and is teaching fellow refugees beekeeping. As Nuri and Afra travel through a broken world, they must confront not only the pain of their own unspeakable loss but dangers that would overwhelm even the bravest souls. Above all, they must make the difficult journey back to each other, a path once so familiar yet rendered foreign by the heartache of displacement.

Moving, intimate, and beautifully written, The Beekeeper of Aleppo is a book for our times: a novel that at once reminds us that the most peaceful and ordinary lives can be utterly upended in unimaginable ways and brings a journey in faraway lands close to home, never to be forgotten.

Praise for The Beekeeper of Aleppo

"This book dips below the deafening headlines, and tells a true story with subtlety and power." (Esther Freud, author of Mr. Mac and Me)

"This compelling tale had me gripped with its compassion, its sensual style, and its onward and lively urge for resolution." (Daljit Nagra, author of British Museum)

"This novel speaks to so much that is happening in the world today. It’s intelligent, thoughtful, and relevant, but very importantly it is accessible. I’m recommending this book to everyone I care about." (Benjamin Zephaniah, author of Refugee Boy)

©2019 Christy Lefteri (P)2019 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"[Christy] Lefteri sensitively charts what it’s like when war comes home, alert to the subtle effects of trauma and grief. Nuri and Afra are not broadly sketched as victims, but rather suffer in different and complex ways from PTSD.... By creating characters with such rich, complex inner lives, Lefteri shows that in order to stretch compassion to millions of people, it helps to begin with one." (Time)

"Beekeeper Nuri and his wife, Afra, are devastated by the Syrian civil war. After violence claims their child and Afra’s eyesight, the couple is forced to flee Aleppo and make the fraught journey to Britain - and an uncertain future." (USA Today Five Books Not to Miss)

"In recounting the daily brutality as well as the glimmers of beauty, this novel humanizes the terrifying refugee stories we read about in the news. Lefteri explores questions of trust and portrays what trauma and loss can do to individuals and their relationships.... A beautiful rumination on seeing what is right in front of us - both the negative and the positive." (The Boston Globe Pick of the Week)

The Beekeeper of Aleppo

Everyone should listen to this book or read it. A masterpiece on so many levels.

Incredible characters brought to life

I am undone by this story and the performance of Art Malik. The gentle yet emotional way the story unfolds, describing the horrors of war, the fleeing people, the PTSD, the hopes and dreams of normal families in the midst of terror. It has captured my heart.
Mr. Malik brings the characters to life.

Beautifully written, very sad

Fully understand the pain and horror of middle eastern war by listening to this book. Narrator is fantastic. Story is a tear jerker so beware. Characters are so real, hard to believe they are fictional. Glad I listened to it.

Beautiful and heart reaching.

Beautifully written and narrated. Thank you. The story felt so truly personal and human, it warmed the experiences that so many people are going through, in a way that we can live in to. This story is a gift to humanity.

Absolutely Amazing

What a beautiful book: a heartbreaking and hopeful story with language that transports you to walking with the characters. I never wanted it to end!! 💖

A personal tale for exposure to refugees and their experiences

A connection of many refugee lives and what they endure are seen through a husband and wife. The seemingly endless cruel and wicked treatment by humans to vulnerable people and those who show up to offer kindness and thus hope, make this an extraordinary book!

Excellent writing, story, and narration

The Beekeeper of Aleppo is an excellent piece of literature. The story is highly relevant considering human migrations that are happening because of oppressive, authoritarian regimes that are willing to express cruelty and acts of terror on their citizenry to maintain power. The compassion towards migrants that is evoked through the characters and their experiences and challenges is what we should be fostering towards immigrants, not hatred and disdain. Compassion heals our wounds and unites us.

Real life

Realistic and tragic, yet heartwarming. As a beekeeper, one sees the parallel world of the hive and the surrounding world of people and the trials and tribulations both face.

Captivating story

Well written novel with a story line that weaves around the lives of people who are trying to escape their past lives

Simply wonderful

We’ve all seen the sad images on news clips of Syrian refugees by the thousands crossing the ocean trying to get to Greece and from there God only knows. We might have tried to imagine what it must be like to lose everything you have and find yourself living in the horrible conditions of a refugee camp. We might have tried to imagine just how awful things must have been in Syria, to be so desperate to flee the war, starvation and violence, that this treacherous journey offered more hope than staying where they were. What this book brings to life in some small way is that which none of us can ever imagine - what it feels like to be a refugee. This book gives you a glimpse into the heart and minds of these people, who despite all the horror they experienced, still had hope. It made me smile at times, even gave me a few small chuckles and it made cry through a smile. Definitely worth the listen.