Allah’s Garden

A dropout Peace Corps Volunteer serving in Morocco had another calling during his time in country. While teaching, he met a Moroccan doctor who had an unprecedented story to tell: He had been one of the longest-held POWs in world history. One meeting led to another, and the foundation to an unshakable friendship was formed. What resulted was the revealing of the doctor’s nearly 25-years captivity under the Polisario in Algeria. His story is a gripping narrative entitled Allah’s Garden written by Thomas Hollowell.

“[Allah’s Garden] is a sad reminder of the cost of war in Western Sahara,” says James Sater, author of the forthcoming Morocco: Challenges to Tradition and Modernity. “Hollowell’s powerful narrative…is an excellent account of a humanitarian disaster….” Other readers are saying that the narrative is an accessible tale, the likes of which have not been written for an American or English-speaking audience. “In a short time, I have learned about the issues past and present in Western Sahara that form the backdrop to this startling story,” says Brooke Mackenzie, a university educator who has worked in Morocco.

The opening scene grabs readers from the start as the Polisario raid a small village in Morocco near the Algerian border. While many civilians and soldiers were killed throughout various battles, the insurgents take prisoners across the Algerian border where they are put into encampments, often tortured for information, and forced to labor constructing the rebels’ infrastructure. With barely enough food to keep them alive and a political stalemate ensuring no one’s future, the POWs undergo conditions that have yet been revealed to a wider audience. As it progresses, the book interweaves the author’s own time in country with his initial meeting of and interviews with the protagonist. “[The main character] could be a tragic figure, given the suffering,” says Ariele Huff, a national columnist based in Seattle, “but due to his persistence, kindness, and courage, this is an inspiring book.”

With the appointment of the U.N. Secretary General’s new envoy, Christopher W.S. Ross, negotiations to the conflict are going to be taken to the next level. Ross, who has taught Arabic and served as the US Ambassador to both Syria and Algeria, plans on using his background and understanding of the region in helping negotiate the issues facing the various countries and organizations involved. The release of Allah’s Garden could not be more timely in that is allows those involved to not forget the humanitarian catastrophes that have taken place in the region. Moreover, the book does not voice overbearing political statements, but stays tightly focused on the protagonist’s plight, which drives the account.

Hollowell has visited Western Sahara numerous times conducting research and examining the situation on various levels. He continues to reside abroad and will be conducting various signings and interviews in the United States this summer, including New York, Connecticut, Chicago, and elsewhere. Allah’s Garden [ISBN: 9780964142398] is his first book of narrative nonfiction. To learn more, visit the author’s portfolio at the official book website: http://www.thomashollowell.com. Or, ask for it by name at your local independent bookstore or library.