‘The bakery opens.

Bread rises like lungs.

I know this neighbourhood

the way one recalls a dream …’

— Nur Turkmani, ‘Hamra’, October

How have the places we come from shaped our ways of seeing? How do we shape a place in return through story, attention, witness?

Join us for Hajar Reads: Place, where we’ll discuss place as a living, breathing archive. In this final Hajar Reads of 2026, we’ll be joined by Hajar Press author Heba Hayek.

We’ll use short extracts from selected Hajar Press titles—Sambac Beneath Unlikely Skies (Heba Hayek) and October (Nur Turkmani)—to prompt discussions and reflective moments. We’ll also use some short creative writing prompts to further think through themes discussed.

There’s no preparation needed for this session; just come along ready to listen and share!

‘If you lose an arm, your brain will think it still exists … The truth is, nothing is more excruciating than placeless pain.’

— Heba Hayek, Sambac Beneath Unlikely Skies

This session is hosted by Hajar Press and will be facilitated by Amber Obasi and Heba Hayek.

Heba Hayek is a London-based, Gaza-raised Palestinian author, creative and facilitator. Her first book, Sambac Beneath Unlikely Skies, won the Creative Award in the 2022 Palestine Book Awards and was chosen as a 2021 Book of the Year by The White Review, Middle East Eye and The New Arab.

Visit Eventbrite for tickets.

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