The Day Nina Simone Stopped Singing

Actress Al-Joundi's recollections of her unconventional youth in war-torn Beirut are heartbreaking yet humorous. The daughter of a Syrian father who insisted his child not be held back by the traditional limitations imposed on women in the Middle East, Al-Joundi was encouraged to be independent. Her father refused to "label" his children as Muslim or Christian, telling Al-Joundi that she should choose for herself, but to never bow down to anyone. Al-Joundi was seven when the war in Lebanon began in 1975. Her family moved constantly, returning to Beirut whenever possible, and Al-Joundi joined the Red Cross as a nurse. "Hungry for everything, for sex, drugs, alcohol," she developed a cocaine habit, and it was only after her father's funeral—he insisted Nina Simone be played instead of readings from the Qur'an—that Al-Joundi ran afoul of other family members and was involuntarily committed; she soon realized that Beirut was no longer for her and moved to France. With her direct prose, Al-Joundi never wallows in the horrors or overplays the absurdity, instead striking a perfect balance in this unique account. (Mar.)