Life in Palestine: On the Thriving Artistic Life of Ramallah

An excerpt from The Book of Ramallah in which Palestinian novelist and poet Maya Abu Al-Hayat portrays Ramallah as a modest hilltop city that became the de facto cultural and political center of modern Palestine. She weaves together its origin legends, its post-Oslo transformation, the daily reality of checkpoints and occupation, and its dense community of writers, poets, musicians, and arts institutions.