Super Short Summary

In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar follows 9-year-old Suleiman during the rise of the Qaddafi regime in 1979 Libya as he grapples with his father's political activities, his mother's alcoholism, and the brutal oppression surrounding them. Suleiman navigates family disintegration, neighborhood dynamics, and the omnipresent threat from the Revolutionary Committee, ultimately questioning trust and loyalty within his fractured world. Sensitive topics include political repression, torture, alcoholism, forced marriage, and the psychological impact of living under an authoritarian regime.