This story is harrowing yet beautiful, truthful and important - one that will stay with me for quite some time. It tells the story of Salama who, whilst in the middle of studying for her Pharmaceautical degree, is plunged into conflict when the Syrian revolution begins. Her world is upended and her family torn apart; she must now learn to live amongst the ruins of her city, forced to take on the role of doctor at the hospital and watch thousands die who she cannot save.
Katouh does not hold back on describing the atrocities of war and as such, this book is a hard read, one which should be undertaken considerately with YA, yet it is firmly a book that should be read as the author is right when she states that people don't really know what's happening in Syria. It is immensely hard as someone who has been born and raised in the safety of the UK to ever be able to comprehend the fear that living in a warzone brings, and yet reading Katouh's descriptions, I came close to understanding the fear that her characters felt.
There were many times I cried during this book but throughout it all, throughout everything that Salama, and also Kenan, experiences, the underlying message is hope. Human beings have a wonderful ability to hold onto hope even in the most difficult of circumstances and I was so very pleased that for the main characters at least there is a happy ending. This was my hope throughout reading!
I was also very impressed with the author's note at the end whereby she discusses her choice to avoid the stereotypes and confinements that they bring in this novel which is very much needed and applauded.
Ultimately, this book is necessary. It is necessary to tell the human side of the Syrian conflict, to give those living in the western world an opportunity to see, feel and understand how it feels to live your lives in fear and it serves as a piece of history too. This book is important and I will be recommending it wholeheartedly.

**Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read an advanced e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own **

I received an advance copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The publisher's description sounded interesting but I have to admit that I wasn't sure what to expect.

I am so glad that I found this book though - and that I kept going when in the very first few pages I was tempted to put it down because I found some of the images in the hospital hard to take. Yes, this was a hard book to read in many ways. The suffering that is described in this book is almost impossible to imagine in my comfortable Western world. Yet at the same time I believe it is important that I, and others, do read books like this. That we don't forget how privileged we are to have never known war in our own country, to have never had to endure thirst, starvation and an ever present threat to our lives and liberty.

What was amazing about this book though was that out of all that horror, fear and bloodshed there was still hope. I wanted there to be a happy ending but at every moment I feared something might happen to prevent that - it made me want to keep on reading, hopeful that there might be some light at the end of the tunnel. At it's heart this is a love story - both about Syrians' love of their country and the love that two teenagers have for each other. But it is much more than this. This is a book that I think will stick with me for a long time - and there aren't many that I can say that about.

Such an emotional book and couldn’t put it down. So heartbreaking to read about the conflict in Syria and what people have been through.

WOW! This book is so beautifully written and will break your heart a thousand times over.

The author pulls no punches when dealing with the harsh realities of war and revolution – the tragedy and loss as well as the love and togetherness of the Syrian people.

The strength of Salama, Kenan, Layla and their families and friends will stay in your heart forever. There were some beautiful touching moments and a real love story amongst so much horror and brutality.

Lemon Trees was a lot to process when I’d finished reading – a highly recommended debut novel from Zoulfa Katouh and would be a well-deserved book of the year!

What a powerful and thought provoking read. An emotional rollercoaster that leaves you feeling changed. Not an easy read by any means but an absolute must read.

A beautifully written powerful book. This made me cry with the emotion of the story. It has some parts that are quite difficult to read but are necessary to the story.

I saw a lot of people request this book and it made me request it as well. I wasn’t keen on the idea of it, because I like to read books that are far away from the troubles of real life. However I decided to give it a go.From the first sentence I knew I had to finish it. The writing is phenomenal. The author knows how to entice you in, keep you on the edge of you seat and honestly keep you guessing. I really do not want to spoil anything, however I cried, screamed, threw my kindle across the room and became speechless, all within very short periods of time. a true rollercoaster ride!I got attached to everyone in the story and I rooted for everyone to be alright. I found that I was very touched by the thought of people in one part of Syria, who are not affected and in another part, their lives have been ripped away from them. The author made me mourn with Salama, how she remembered the life they had before. it was truly an interesting and hard breaking story. A must read. I will never forget this book.

I just finished reading this and I feel overwhelmed! I am utterly and completely astounded by how painfully beautiful this story is. Zoulfa Katouh, you've written a masterpiece that will be talked about for years!

This is the first book I want to give 5+ stars to this year! No matter how many more books I read till the end of December, this has won a post in my top 5 best reads of 2022!

If you're a fan of Khaled Hosseini, you HAVE to read this book. Zaoulfa Katouh has created a war story like never before. It is a story of unimaginable tragedies but also of unwavering hope. It is a story of unmeasurable loss but also of young love. It is a story of trembling weakness but also of insurmountable strength. The author has crafted a mosaic of complex characters that will make you root and pray for them till the very end. This is YA lit but the story revolves around intense themes that the author has dealt with in a delicate and sensitive manner. With every new revelation in the story, you'll find yourself grabbing for tissues and will have your heart pounding right out of your chest.

The story is set in the broken city of Homs in war-stricken Syria. A young girl named Salama is forced to abandon her pharmacy degree and volunteer at a hospital in Homs when the cries of freedom break out in Syria. She faces immense loss in the form of her parents, her brother, and her house. All that keeps her going is her strong sense of duty towards the helpless people flooding the hospital every day, and her pregnant SIL, Layla. Salama's trauma has compelled her to conjure up a hallucination called Khawf (fear) who guides her actions and makes her life a living nightmare. She is conflicted on whether to leave Syria and build a new life abroad or stay and fight for her dear country. Her encounter with the charming Kenan makes decision making even harder for her. She slowly falls in love with Kenan who reciprocates the feelings. As the story evolves, you will find yourself gob smacked at how some things are not what they seemed. Read to find out whether the budding love between these two youth will finally bloom? Will Salama leave Syria?

This excruciatingly beautiful story will stay with you for a long, long time.

P.S. Make sure to go through the trigger warnings before embarking the harrowing journey of reading this masterpiece.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloomsbury for this ARC.

Really enjoyed (if that is the right word) this book. Very eye opening and harrowing at times, Really beautifully written, particularly the second half of the book. My only critique would be that I found the writing of Khawf at odds with the writing style of the rest of the book. It always stood out as different and a bit jarring, but then maybe that was the point!
I do think this is more suited to New Adult/Adult then YA, I don’t believe in young people being shielded from the goings on in the world but did find some of the, presumably very accurate, depictions of certain events to be rather harrowing and graphic.

Wow, what an incredible and beautifully written book. It's heartbreaking, harrowing and unforgettable. It is hard to read at times due to the subject content, but I feel it is a must read and it is a book that will stay with me.

I don't think any words I write can do this book justice. I finished it a few days ago now and I haven't stopped thinking about it. It's a novel that I urge everyone to read. Not only is it written beautifully with wonderful characters, but it shares the truth about living through the Syrian Revolution. It's a heartbreaking yet hopeful novel that shines a light on Syria and its people.
Forget the often over-politicised reports you read here in the West and discover through Katouh's characters the reality that has faced Syrians for a decade - those who have stayed in Syria and those who have reluctantly had to leave their homeland.
This fascinating cast of characters show how love can thrive even in the most fearful of situations. This is an incredibly important and very powerful novel. It's a book that will open minds and hearts - a book that has been sorely needed.

As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow
By Zoulfa Katouh

I owe this book an apology. I didn't realise it was YA when I requested it, and normally if I get a sniff of teenage angst I'm out of there. I almost DNFed it at about 40% because of the very YA writing style, but kept going as I had committed to reviewing it. BUT...

This is a very tough read, bordering on trauma-porn. It is set in Syria at the height of tensions between government forces and rebel incursion forces. Every day life carries on among sniper attacks, bombs, violent protests, gutted cities and towns, empty shops, sanctions, embargoes. A place where being killed is not the worst thing that can happen to you.

Salama has lost her mother, and her father and brother were captured and imprisoned in a previous skirmish. She hopes they are dead and not being tortured. All she has left in the world is her sister-in-law Layla who is 7 months pregnant with Salama's niece. Salama was studying pharmacology before their town was decimated, now one of only a handful of people with any medical knowledge, she works, unpaid, in the local hospital, treating the sick and wounded and sometimes carrying out surgery. These are desperate times.

With everyone leaving with nothing more than the shirts on their backs, she has to decide if she should go too, secure passage on one of the rickety boats departing for Syracuse in Italy, or should she remain there for all those wounded and dying? This is where the tension lies through the novel. The love of country versus the need to secure ones family.

Studded with grief and trauma, guilt over responsibilities and broken promises, this book explores so many themes associated with PTSD. In her own grief Salama hallucinates a character named Khawf. He is the personification of all her fear and guilt. It was this character I found most annoying in the early stage of the story, however as the tale unfolded I began to understand his role and can now appreciate what he brought to the story.

I find the writing a little heavy handed. There's no light and shade, it is full on. Tears don't just flow, they burn like acid. Everything is so extreme that it all loses it's impact. However the pace is very quick, short chapters keep the pages turning, and despite the fact that I almost DNFed, despite the OTT descriptions and airy-fairyness I associate with YA writing, this is a very important story which I think would translate very well to the screen. So far me, both the story and the telling contain redemption.

Ireland/UK, ANZ Publication date: 15th September 2022
Thanks to #netgalley and #bloomsburypublishing for the galley and the pleasant surprise

This is a beautiful story, but it’s also a stark warning. It shows the brutal reality of life in a country where a man so desperate to hold on to power will sell his soul and sacrifice his land and its people in the most heinous of ways.
Salama is an 18yo pharmacy student in Homs when the people finally rise against Syria’s dictatorship. Her city becomes a war zone and is systematically destroyed, along with everything she holds dear and her hopes and dreams for the future. Suddenly she’s having to sew up wounds, amputate limbs, deal with the devastating aftermath of Sarin gas attacks and watch children die in the local hospital, all the while dodging sniper bullets every time she steps outside.
All of this happens while the rest of the world looks on and does nothing to stop it. No wonder the people of Syria feel abandoned. How must it feel when you’re more scared of being taken alive than you are of death?
Her one ray of hope is Kenan, who appears at the hospital one morning begging for someone to help save his little sister, who can’t make it to the hospital.
He restores colour to her life, and hope for the future.
This is a wonderful story, based in reality, and at times very difficult to read, but beautifully written, and one the whole world should read.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the ARC, and to Zoulfa Katouh for her bravery in writing this story and sharing it.
Five big, beautiful lemons of hope for this story and the story of the people of Syria.
🍋🍋🍋🍋🍋

Number of times this book almost made me cry: 3

I loved everything about this. The characters, the story, the writing, the Muslim representation, all of it was just spot on. I was so invested in Salama, Layla, and Kenan, so scared for all of them, and constantly expecting the worst to happen. They had my entire heart. The relationships were all so well-crafted; both the romance between Salama and Kenan, and the friendship/sisterhood between Salama and Layla, were vividly brought to life.

Salama is an incredibly sympathetic character. She carries the weight of the world on her shoulders, and fear rules her life, literally, in the manifestation of a person who calls himself Khawf. She knows he's not real, that it's all in her head, but that doesn't make it any easier to deal with. And sometimes, this leads her to questionable decisions, but I always understood exactly what was driving her and could empathize with what she felt she needed to do to survive. I don't know if it's ever really possible to imagine the living conditions of people constantly confronted with violence and death--where every moment could be your last, and the toll that takes on a person. The descriptions were raw and sometimes brutal, as befits the story the author is trying to tell.

Kenan is a total cinnamon roll, and I loved everything about their relationship. Every time he was there to offer comfort or support, my heart melted a little more. The romance is pure and beautiful. Fun fact, Kenan means to cover/to protect (which is definitely what he does), but it can also mean home. Which means Kenan is Salama's home, and that is making my heart so soft I don't know if I can handle it.

Of course, I can't neglect Layla, who was a beam of sunshine throughout this grim tale. Despite everything that happened to her, she was still hopeful and constantly looking for the positive things. Her determination to live her life to the fullest, war be damned, is in stark contrast to Salama barely surviving each day, and I think she, alongside Kenan, brought a necessary balance to Salama and Khawf.

There is hope in this story, but also a lot of justifiable anger at the way the West has collectively turned its back on Syrians and the horrors they are living through. One of the things both Salama and Kenan struggle with is a sense of torn loyalty; should they stay in Syria, even though it might mean their death and the death of those they hold dear? Or should they leave, abandoning the revolution? What does it mean to fight for your country? What do you prioritize, when your safety isn't guaranteed either way, and refugees are often lost at sea? Or when they do land, they're shuffled off to a camp, so people don't have to be confronted with what is happening elsewhere in the world? If this book achieves one thing, I hope it's that it opens people's eyes and makes them realize that Syria still needs our support.

The Muslim representation is very dear to my heart. It mirrors how I practice my faith; the panic at finding yourself without a hijab in a place where you know you should be wearing it, and having that be your first priority, but also the discussions about believing in fate but still taking all the steps necessary to achieve what you want to achieve. And then there were all the small details sprinkled throughout, like an offhand comment Layla makes about praying during rainfall because that's when prayers are answered. I felt completely represented, which is still such a rare feeling.

This book broke my heart, but also managed to heal it, and I can't recommend it enough.

Oh this was so beautifully written.

Following the story of Salama, as she battles with the achingly difficult decision to leave her home country of Syria in the midst of bombings and revolution, Katouh spins a tragic tale of hope and heartbreak into one. They do not shy away from portraying the true horrors of battle, and the reality of living in a war-torn country, in a way that borders on graphic in some places, but is so powerful to read.
This book is so important. It not only educates on a part of our present so many of us are blind to, but on the very real symptoms and consequences of PTSD and trauma that Katouh portrayed with dizzying realism.

This book is marked as young adult, but it is truly one everyone should read.

(Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for this eARC

Many thanks for this amazing ARC!
This is a heartbreaking and beautiful book!
The subject matter is important to be shared and makes for a tearful read. The emotions the author portrays take you on a rollercoaster! I feel mental health and trauma were both well presented throughout.
This book will stay with me for a long time and will be one I will recommend.

I saw so many people read this book and it made me request it straight away. I was nervous because I like to read books that are far away from the troubles of real life. However I knew that this was a book that needed to be read.

From the first sentence I was hooked.. From the very first sentence. The writing is phenomenal. The author knows how to hook you in, keep you on the edge and honestly keep you guessing. I do not want to spoil anything but my GOD!!!!! SHOOK. SPEECHLESS. CRYING. SCREAMING. IN AWE. So many ways to describe my emotion.

I was doing that thing where I kept checking the pages but only because I thought THERE IS NOT MUCH LEFT, HOW IS THIS GOING TO END WELL. What a rollercoaster!!!!

Characters, all beautiful. Salama held this book together but Kenan, Layla, the hospital staff, even the other guy whose name I've forgotten now but begins with K as well, he was really good!!! I loved everyone and I needed every one to be OK.

I also found some parts hit me more than others. The thought of people in one part of Syria who are not affected and in the next town, their livelihood had been ripped from them. It made me so sad when Salama thought about how life had been before.

Before.
Before, when they would go out and eat, travel freely and be amongst family. Even things like not having to do anything!!! Being lazy is not an option anymore.

Also the medical aspect was really interesting!! Seeing how they respond to casualties, with the little medicine that they have.

A must read.
I will never forget this book.

This book tells of love, war, death, loss and destruction with characters bound by patriotism, religion and fear- desperate yet terrified to stay, too dedicated and too poor to leave .

The characters are outstanding from the outset and the descriptive writing places you right in the rubble, choking on the dust.

An extremely harrowing but essential read to bring back the reality that whilst we sit and read in comfort real people are going through these horrifying experiences every hour of every day and it is not just a news bulletin at 10pm.

I was so excited to read it this book and it did not let me down. It's genuinely one of the most
honest, heartbreaking, beautifully written books I've read not only this year, but ever. This is an incredible work of art. It's a book of honesty, of life, of beauty, of (correct) representation. It's a book of family, love, resilience - it's a book of hope. Every single page, every single word made the wait to read this book worth it. Zoulfa Katouh is an incredible author who is a true artist with words. The way such a harrowing and tricky topic has been handled and written about so respectfully and with grace and dignity. The book is understandable for younger audiences whilst still having so much of an impact, yet the book doesn’t feel YA - it feels like a vital read for people of all ages, to open their eyes. This is the reality. The love story interwoven as a subplot was beautiful and provided that glimmer of light and hope needed in such darkness, and the way grief and death was handled and created in the pages was exquisite and so clever. An incredible well thought out and well executed book. I truly think this book will open peoples eyes, minds and hearts.

I read this book in 2 days and cannot wait to read it again when the book is released this month. I’m only sad I won’t have that first time reading experience again! I know 'As Long as the Lemon Tress Grow' is not only a literary masterpiece full of heart, but it's also a book that is going to stay with me for a very long time.

This is not just a gripping, and challenging, read, it is an important contribution to history because it records the devastating effects on ordinary people of the civil war in Syria. Samara was a pharmacy student but the war has made her a surgeon and whatever else is needed in her hospital. She has lost her brother to the war and looks after his pregnant widow. Her life changing decision is whether to stay and do good or escape to Germany at considerable financial cost. Is her duty to her country or to her own future? This book faces many life changing decisions interspersed with dramatic background from the ongoing war. Then she meets her future husband and they plan a future away from the country they love. This is not an easy read because it is unrelenting in its honesty. It is very well written and is an important contribution to the records of this dreadful war. I recommend it.