By the Sea (novel)

By the Sea
First paperback edition (2002)
AuthorAbdulrazak Gurnah
LanguageEnglish
PublisherBloomsbury Publishing (UK); The New Press (US)
Publication date
2001
Pages245
Preceded byAdmiring Silence 
Followed byDesertion 

By the Sea is a novel by Abdulrazak Gurnah. It was first published in the United States by The New Press on 11 June 2001[1] and in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing in May 2001.[2] It is Gurnah's sixth novel.[3] By the Sea was longlisted for the Booker Prize and shortlisted for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.[4]

By the Sea is narrated, in part, by a man named Saleh Omar, who is attempting to enter the United Kingdom on a fake passport.[5][6] Omar also goes by the pseudonym "Rajab Shaaban Mahmud", an identity he stole to use on his fake passport.[6] The novel is also narrated, in part, by Latif Mahmud, the son of the real Rajab Shaaban Mahmud—a man who turns out to be a scoundrel.[6] Latif Mahmud also travels to Europe, but by a more legitimate route—obtaining a student visa to East Germany and travelling by a circuitous route from there to the UK.[7] After the author separately narrating their stories, the two characters encountered and finally came to a reconcilement. A UK social worker, Rachel who specializes in difficult immigration cases, played a crucial role in the novel. It is her who contacted Latif for help on Saleh Omer's case, which made the two protagonists' reunion possible, and helped to better show Saleh Omar's inner feelings.

  1. ^ "By the Sea". Kirkus Reviews. 1 April 2001. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  2. ^ Clark, Candida (19 May 2001). "Observer review: By the Sea by Abdulrazak Gurnah". The Observer. Archived from the original on 10 August 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  3. ^ Olaussen 2009, p. 217.
  4. ^ "Abdulrazak Gurnah". Booker Prize. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  5. ^ Erouart-Siad, Patrick (1 June 2001). "Review: By the Sea". Boston Review. Archived from the original on 6 September 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b c Olaussen 2009, p. 218.
  7. ^ Helff 2008, p. 393.