When We Left the Bridge

Description

“What feelings of joy does the human heart hold? What true bliss can burst forth in its veins? What wild, abundant things surge forth in a single moment?” This is how Abdul Rahman Munif felt when he left the bridge; these were his feelings. In moments of love, they erupt, and in moments of despair, failure, joy, and ecstasy—a boundless spectrum of emotions intertwines at any given moment, giving rise to visions in Abdul Rahman Munif… visions that take shape as wisdom and philosophy, portraying humanity in its various manifestations, its thoughts and illusions, and its struggle with existence and with itself.

“When We Left the Bridge” is a novel whose protagonists are a hunter, a dog, and a duck. In a single moment, these characters transform into a sage, a minister, and a queen. A monologue, rich in meaning and nuance, unfolds within the hunter, Zaki Nadawi, and is brought to life by Munif to construct the human condition in all its facets. These facets emerge with the recurring tones of the internal monologue, sometimes rising to proclaim his disappointment and anger, and at other times subsiding, heralding a peace between the individual and his inner self. This unleashes a philosophy that is like an endless dream in the world of Abdul Rahman Munif’s fiction.