Desolation

Highly Commended in the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards for Fiction

‘It is a work preoccupied with love, truth and the cruelty of fate. This, by implication, is the kind of inquiry that can only be undertaken by storytellers and, as such, Desolation is an accomplished affirmation of the necessity of the novelist’s craft.’—The Guardian

‘This powerful work cements Asgari as a vital voice in Australian literature’—Books + Publishing

‘Hossein Asgari’s Desolation speaks powerfully of the destructiveness of war and the hope that lies in fiction.’—The Conversation

‘You are a writer, aren’t you? I have a story for you.’

‘I’m working on my own story, and—’

‘It’s a true story, not one of those made-up, pointless whatever it is that you people write.’

‘It’s called fiction, and though I appreciate that you want to—’

‘Appreciate?’ He smirks. You don’t have to appreciate anything or talk as if you’re being interviewed by CNN. I’ll tell you my story, then it’s up to you whether to write it or not.’

This is the story of Amin as he falls in and out of love and the choices he makes in the shadow of his brother’s death, lost in the tragic downing of Flight 655.

Amid the chaos of 1980s Iran, he witnesses the senselessness of violence and the enduring power of sorrow. As he grapples with the trauma, Amin discovers a profound truth: stories can both heal and deceive. Through the lens of literature and the harsh realities of politics, he questions the blurred lines between truth and lies. 

A tale of disillusionment and the human spirit, Desolation explores the enduring power of storytelling in the face of tragedy.

PRAISE FOR DESOLATION:

‘a grave and gripping portrait of a man whose hopelessness and loneliness turned him towards belief but who, even in his despair, could not find God.’—The Saturday Paper

‘At the heart of this novel, though, lies the power of story.’—Sydney Morning Herald