THE NIGHTINGALE
Every day Leila al-Ghani spends in Mosul is a reminder of what her life once was. Before the war, she was the daughter of one of the city’s finest families. She was encouraged by her parents to get an education, to think like a modern woman. But now, with Mosul crumbling around her, she is expected to strictly adhere to traditions, to dress modestly with the hijab covering her hair, and to be arranged in marriage.
Disobeying her domineering father and secretly taking a job as a translator at an American military base, Leila’s beliefs are forever challenged when she meets a host of new people with different perspectives on the war—and the world. But it is Leila's friendship with Captain James Cartwright that will test her courage in profound ways. And when she discovers those she loves are deeply entangled in the most violent, controversial aspects of the war, where she places her loyalties could cost Leila her life.
The Nightingale is a riveting debut that offers a rare glimpse into war-torn Iraq—where a spirited young woman must choose between honoring the customs of the past and her own hopes for the future…
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"Gallaway’s topical first novel succeeds on three levels: as a probing look at the insurgency in postwar Iraq; as an indictment of illegal interrogations of Iraqi detainees by U.S. Special Forces; and as a moving love story…Gallaway’s debut combines romance, intriguing cultural background, and world events in just the right ratio to appeal to a broad spectrum of readers." -- Booklist
"There's a lot of truth in this work of fiction." --Laura Fitzgerald, author of Veil of Roses
"Morgana Gallaway sets her affecting debut novel in war-torn Mosul, Iraq…Gallaway, whose father was a police adviser in Mosul, has done a convincing job of portraying a place and a protagonist in the midst of terrifying change." – Cleveland Plain-Dealer
"Gallaway’s provocative debut is a politically inspired romance set in contemporary Iraq… When violence in Mosul reaches a fever pitch, Leila must choose between her family and what she knows is right… Gallaway…doesn’t flinch from depicting the everyday violence of Iraq or the difficult choices of life in a war zone." – Publishers Weekly