Recommendations based on عودة الغائبby Monther Alkabbani

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. The Forty Rules of Love

    by Elif Shafak
    A story of romance and spiritual enlightenment, exploring the teachings of a Sufi master.

    Ella Rubenstein is forty years old and unhappily married when she takes a job as a reader for a literary agent. Her first assignment is to read and report on Sweet Blasphemy , a novel written by a ... (Goodreads)

  2. Please Look After Mom

    by Shin Kyung-sook
    A family's journey of grief and healing following the disappearance of their mother.

    When sixty-nine-year-old So-Nyo is separated from her husband among the crowds of the Seoul subway station , her family begins a desperate search to find her. Yet as long-held secrets and private ... (Wikipedia)

  3. Leo Africanus

    by Amin Maalouf
    An epic historical novel, tracing the journey of a North African explorer and diplomat in the 16th century.

    "I, Hasan the son of Muhammad the weigh-master, I, Jean-Leon de Medici, circumcised at the hand of a barber and baptized at the hand of a pope, I am now called the African, but I am not from Africa, ... (Goodreads)

  4. Sophie's World

    by Jostein Gaarder
    A journey of philosophical discovery told through a young girl's exploration of the world.

    Sophie Amundsen is a 14-year-old girl who lives in Lillesand , Norway. The book begins with Sophie receiving two messages in her mailbox and a postcard addressed to Hilde Møller Knag. Afterwards, she ... (Wikipedia)

  5. The Broken Wings

    by Kahlil Gibran
    A philosophical tale of love and loss, exploring the journey of life and death.

    This is the exquisitely tender story of love that beats desperately against the taboos of Oriental tradition. With great sensitivity, Gibran describes his passion as a youth for Selma Karamy, the ... (Goodreads)

  6. The Bastard of Istanbul

    by Elif Shafak
    Exploring the shared history between Turkey and the US while uncovering secrets of a family’s past.

    From one of Turkey’s most acclaimed and outspoken writers, a novel about the tangled histories of two families. In her second novel written in English, Elif Shafak confronts her country’s violent ... (Goodreads)

  7. Blindness

    by José Saramago
    A society is plunged into chaos when everyone suddenly loses their sight.

    Blindness is the story of an unexplained mass epidemic of blindness afflicting nearly everyone in an unnamed city, and the social breakdown that swiftly follows. The novel follows the misfortune of a ... (Wikipedia)

  8. They Came to Baghdad

    by Agatha Christie
    An intrepid female adventurer races against time to thwart a plot to overthrow the government.

    A secret summit of superpowers is to be held in Baghdad , but it is no longer secret. A shadowy group (which is both anti-Communist and anti-Capitalist) is plotting to sabotage the event. Things get ... (Wikipedia)

  9. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

    by Patrick Süskind
    A murder mystery set in 18th century France, exploring the depths of human obsession.

    An acclaimed bestseller and international sensation, Patrick Suskind's classic novel provokes a terrifying examination of what happens when one man's indulgence in his greatest passion—his sense of ... (Goodreads)

  10. The Hen Who Dreamed She Could Fly

    by Sun-mi Hwang
    A hen's quest to break free of her mundane life and fulfill her dream of flying.

    A Korean, Charlotte's Web,More than 2 million copies sold, This is the story of a hen named Sprout. No longer content to lay eggs on command, only to have them carted off to the market, she glimpses ... (Goodreads)

  11. The Devil and Miss Prym

    by Paulo Coelho
    A small town is given a proposition by a stranger, to kill someone in exchange for gold. The moral dilemma tests the town's values.

    A stranger arrives at the remote village of Viscos, carrying with him a backpack containing a notebook and eleven gold bars. He comes searching for the answer to a question that torments him: Are ... (Goodreads)

  12. The Insulted and Humiliated

    by Fyodor Dostoevsky
    A story of revenge, focusing on morality and redemption.

    Natasha leaves her parents' home and runs away with Alyosha (prince Alexey) – the son of Prince Valkovsky. As a result of his pain, her father, Nikolai, curses her. The only friend that remains by ... (Wikipedia)

  13. Mornings in Jenin

    by Susan Abulhawa
    A Palestinian family's generations-long journey, struggling for identity and freedom.

    A heart-wrenching, powerfully written novel that could do for Palestine what, The Kite Runner, did for Afghanistan. Forcibly removed from the ancient village of Ein Hod by the newly formed state of ... (Goodreads)

  14. The Dream of a Ridiculous Man

    by Fyodor Dostoevsky
    A man's quest for happiness and meaning, resulting in a journey of self-realization.

    The story opens with the narrator wandering the streets of St. Petersburg . He is contemplating the ridiculousness of his own life, and his recent realization that nothing matters to him any more. It ... (Wikipedia)

  15. Tell No One

    by Harlan Coben
    A man's quest to uncover the truth behind the disappearance of his wife, uncovering a deeper mystery.

    For Dr. David Beck, the loss was shattering. And every day for the past eight years, he has relived the horror of what happened. The gleaming lake. The pale moonlight. The piercing screams. The night ... (Goodreads)

  16. By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept

    by Paulo Coelho
    A woman reunites with her childhood love and embarks on a spiritual journey to discover her true self and purpose in life.

    From Paulo Coelho, author of the bestselling The Alchemist , comes a poignant, richly poetic story that reflects the depth of love and life. Rarely does adolescent love reach its full potential, but ... (Goodreads)

  17. The White Tiger

    by Aravind Adiga
    An exploration of the Indian class system, told from the perspective of a lower-caste man.

    The entire novel is narrated through letters by Balram Halwai to the Premier of China, who will soon be visiting India. Balram is an Indian man from an impoverished background, born in the village of ... (Wikipedia)

  18. Origin

    by Dan Brown
    An exploration of secret societies and history, uncovering dark secrets of the past.

    Edmond Kirsch, a billionaire philanthropist, computer scientist and futurist , as well as a strident atheist , attends a meeting in Catalonia ( Spain ) with Roman Catholic Bishop Antonio Valdespino, ... (Wikipedia)

  19. The Three

    by Sarah Lotz
    Four planes crash simultaneously, leaving three children as the only survivors. But something sinister seems to be following them.

    Four simultaneous plane crashes. Three child survivors. A religious fanatic who insists the three are harbingers of the apocalypse. What if he's right? The world is stunned when four commuter planes ... (Goodreads)

  20. Rising Tides

    by Nora Roberts
    Ethan and Grace's love story unfolds amidst the backdrop of a small town's rebuilding after a devastating hurricane.

    Ethan Quinn shares his late father's passion for the ocean, and he's determined to make the family boat-building business a success. But as well as looking out for his young brother Seth, the strong ... (Goodreads)

  21. Does My Head Look Big in This?

    by Randa Abdel-Fattah
    A coming-of-age story about a Muslim-Australian teenager who decides to wear the hijab full-time and faces discrimination and challenges from her peers.

    When sixteen-year-old Amal decides to wear the hijab full-time, her entire world changes, all because of a piece of cloth... Sixteen-year-old Amal makes the decision to start wearing the hijab ... (Goodreads)

  22. Dead Man's Folly

    by Agatha Christie
    A murder mystery set in a country house, where a game of murder becomes all too real. Hercule Poirot must solve the case before it's too late.

    Poirot is summoned to Nasse House in Devon by Ariadne Oliver, who is staging a Murder Hunt as part of a summer fête the next day. At Nasse House, Mrs Oliver explains that small aspects of her plans ... (Wikipedia)

  23. Girl at War

    by Sara Nović
    A young girl's life is torn apart by the Yugoslav Wars, forcing her to flee and confront the trauma of her past.

    Zagreb, summer of 1991. Ten-year-old Ana Jurić is a carefree tomboy who runs the streets of Croatia's capital with her best friend, Luka, takes care of her baby sister, Rahela, and idolizes her ... (Goodreads)

  24. As the Crow Flies

    by Jeffrey Archer
    A family saga that follows the fortunes of a man who embarks on a dangerous journey to find his father.

    Growing up in the slums of East End London, Charlie Trumper dreams of someday running his grandfather's fruit and vegetable barrow. That day comes suddenly when his grandfather dies leaving him the ... (Goodreads)

  25. The Hollow

    by Agatha Christie
    An isolated country estate becomes the scene of a murder mystery as a group of strangers are forced to work together to uncover the truth.

    On the morning that he and his downtrodden wife, Gerda, are due to travel down to the country to weekend with friends, Dr John Christow, a successful physician, leading researcher, and very tired and ... (Wikipedia)

  26. Sea Swept

    by Nora Roberts
    A man's journey of self-discovery, learning to accept and love the family he never knew.

    Cameron Quinn is a champion boat racer who travels the world and enjoys a lifestyle soaked in champagne and women. As a child, Cameron survived abuse before he was adopted by the Quinns after they ... (Wikipedia)

  27. Apt Pupil

    by Stephen King
    A young student discovers the truth about an elderly neighbor's dark past, with devastating consequences.

    In 1974, Los Angeles teenager Todd Bowden arrives at the doorstep of elderly German immigrant Arthur Denker, accusing him of being a wanted Nazi war criminal named Kurt Dussander. The old man ... (Wikipedia)

  28. Are You Afraid of the Dark?

    by Sidney Sheldon
    A gripping suspense-thriller that follows a woman's search for a mysterious killer.

    Four people die separately in four different accidents in four different places across the world - Richard Stevens in New York, Mark Harris in Paris, Franz Verbrugge in Berlin and Gary Reynolds in ... (Wikipedia)

  29. Velocity

    by Dean Koontz
    A thrilling race against time to stop a serial killer before he strikes again.

    Not so long ago a promising young short story writer, Billy Wiles has not even turned on his PC since his fiancée Barbara fell into a coma several years ago. Leading the life of a recluse who spends ... (Wikipedia)

  30. Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less

    by Jeffrey Archer
    Four strangers' desperate attempts to reclaim their stolen fortunes.

    The conned: an Oxford don, a revered society physician, a chic French art dealer, and a charming English lord. They have one thing in common. Overnight, each novice investor lost his life's fortune ... (Goodreads)