Elie Sutton is both the central figure of this book and a symbol of the Syrian-Jewish people.Jews had resided in Syria for over 2500 years. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they were confronted with widespread military conscription into the Ottoman Empire. Then a sharp rise in violent anti-Semitism swept over the country after Israel became a state in 1948. The Jewish people suffered a severe decline in their economic and social conditions and their citizenship, businesses and homes were confiscated. For these reasons, the Jews fled Syria and scattered to foreign lands.Elie's father, Selim Menash&233; Sutton, had the foresight to understand the looming threat upon his family. He devised a plan to export each of his seven sons, one at a time, with the hope they each would find better lives in other countries. Elie was the third of seven sons. At the age of twenty, he was forced to renounce his study of medicine and his dream of becoming a doctor. His father had other plans. Elie was to be exported to China.The impact of world events on Elie's life becomes clear through focused attention on the history of the era, particularly in the Middle East. As Elie's story reveals the resourcefulness, tenacity and moral strength of a man caught up in challenging times, the hand of Divine intervention comes into play and the power of the tight-knit Sephardic-Syrian community pulls him in.This narrative connects the personal story of a father and his sons, the transplanting of a community noted for its cohesive inner strength, and a devoted husband who will do anything to save his beloved wife.

Alien at Home: Divine Intervention: The Life of Elie Sutton

Bahia Abrams

Sutco Publishing

The Other Half of My Soul

Abrams confronts centuries-old conflicts that arise when lovers are forced to collide with the hatreds that often divide Jew and Muslim. Drawing upon her background growing up in a tightly-knit, closed Syrian-Jewish community, she weaves a powerful, action-packed story of political intrigue with an exploration of irrational hatred and unconditional love. 
 Syrian-born Rami, a passionate Muslim drawn into the clutches of an extremist organization, and American-born Syrian Jew Rayna, raised in the orthodox tradition but longing to experience life beyond the confines of her upbringing, meet at an American university. They endure backlash from intolerant and hostile parents and suffer at the hands of an erratic and fanatical Muslim leader.

Literature & Fiction

Contemporary

Grateful Steps

Consistently receiving 5-star ratings, The Other Half of My Soul; is a gripping story about an American-born Syrian Jew from Brooklyn and a Syrian-born Shi-ite Muslim from Aleppo. The book raises profound questions about personal choices, commitments, responsibility, and the most basic truths of the human race. 
Rayna is born into wealth and privilege. She is raised in a community steeped in orthodox Judaism and Syrian culture. Rebelling against an unwritten law dictating that a female does not leave her family home until marrying a man approved by her parents, Rayna breaks away and attends the University of Maryland to study journalism. 
Rami is a clever and discerning eighteen year old, part of the underprivileged Shi-ite minority in his country. His family barely ekes out a living at their pastry stand in the Aleppo Souk. Al-Shahid, the Syrian-backed terrorist group, offers Rami a scholarship to study in America at the University of Maryland. He dares not refuse. 
Rami and Rayna meet at college. Their strong Syrian culture quickly bonds them and the forbidden happens. They fall in love. Grappling for survival, they collide with conflicts and hatreds that divide Muslim and Jew, endure intolerance and harsh backlash from their families, and suffer under the control of an irrational terrorist leader. 
Drawn from life experiences, historical events, current happenings, and actual places, The Other Half of My Soul; journeys across four continents, uncovering the barbaric behavior of humanity. In the end, the book bears a powerful message about unconditional love and the ability to defeat the hateful dictates of ideology.

Genre Fiction

Grateful Step

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Books by Bahia Abrams

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Bahia Abrams. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Alien at Home: Divine Intervention: The Life of Elie Sutton

The Other Half of My Soul

The Other Half of My Soul