In Rabih Alameddine’s new novel, a mother and son share a tiny Beirut apartment

Summary

---

NPR's Book of the Day — Rabih Alameddine’s New Novel: A Mother and Son in Beirut

Date: September 9, 2025
Host: Andrew Limbong
Guest: Rabih Alameddine
Interviewer: Scott Simon

---

Episode Overview

This episode of NPR's Book of the Day spotlights Rabih Alameddine’s novel, The True Story of Raja the Gullible and His Mother. The book draws on Alameddine’s own experiences with his aging mother to explore the poignant, complex, and often humorous relationship between a son and his sharp-witted, stubborn mother living together in a cramped Beirut apartment. The conversation covers intimacy, self-perception, the challenges of memory loss, and finding humor amid hardship, reflecting on how life’s mosaic of experiences shape storytelling.

---

Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Genesis of the Book

• Rabih Alameddine shares that while the book is fiction, it is highly influenced by his own relationship with his 84-year-old mother, whose health is robust but memory is fading.
  • “Everything I've ever written is drawn from my family life and experience... the mother in the book is not much like my mother. However... the reason the mother is such a big thing in that book is because of my mother and what she's going through right now.” — Alameddine (05:52)
• The main character, Raja, a philosophy teacher, finds his greatest challenge not in Beirut’s turmoil or personal adversity, but in caring for his mother, Zalpha.
  • “Deciphering her was a feat that would surely have flummoxed Hercules. My Mother as the unthinkably impossible 13th task.” — Scott Simon, quoting the novel (01:45)

Self-Deprecation and Defense Mechanisms

• Raja refers to himself using terms like “the Gullible,” “the neurotic clown,” and “the dimwit.”
  • Alameddine explains: “Self deprecation for the most part... It's how he sees himself. And he uses that as... a defense mechanism, for lack of a better word, something that keeps him sane.” (02:26)

Humor in Family Dynamics

• Host Scott Simon highlights the affectionate, irreverent banter between Raja and his mother, noting a particular phrase Zalpha often uses in jest — even if a bit off-color.
  • Alameddine: “That's the whole point. You should laugh.” (03:45)
• Humor is central to both the novel and Alameddine’s worldview.
  • “A lot of the trouble, I think, with the world is that we’re too earnest. If we’re unable to laugh at the world, to laugh at ourselves, it’s a sad life.” (09:12)

Intimacy and Connection

• The friendship between Zalpha and her best friend, Madame Terwheel (a generator mafia don who runs a booming business in Lebanon’s electricity crisis), illustrates the varied forms of love and companionship that sustain people.
  • “One of the most important [intimacies] is somebody to listen to us no matter what we’re talking about... the way I look at it is it’s about seeing someone completely or close to completely, and that’s what they found in each other.” — Alameddine (04:38)
  • Contrasted with the mother-son relationship, which remains fundamentally incomplete: “No matter... however close their relationship is, it’s still never complete because it’s a mother and son relationship.” (05:40)

Storytelling as a Tapestry

• Alameddine’s narration in the novel weaves across timelines, like a river with many branches—a conscious stylistic choice that mirrors lived experience.
  • “A tale has many tails and many heads, particularly if it's true. Like life, it is a river with many branches, rivulets and creeks.” — Scott Simon, quoting the novel (07:21)
  • Alameddine expands: “Some writing is like building a house one brick at a time... I prefer, for me, novels that are more like threads going this way and that. ...you end up with is not a house but a carpet, a nice Persian carpet.” (07:35)

Laughter as Resistance

• Humor doesn’t mean ignoring the world’s troubles.
  • “Obviously it doesn't mean that it's not serious. Obviously... But if you're not having a good time as you're doing it, it's a problem. Who was it that said... if the revolution doesn't have dancing in it, I want out.” — Alameddine (09:12)

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Self-Deprecation:
  “Self deprecation...keeps him sane.” — Rabih Alameddine (02:31)
• On Intimate Friendship:
  “She’s a generator mafia don... one of the best at it.” — Rabih Alameddine on Madame Terwheel (04:09)
• On Storytelling:
  “What you end up with is not a house but a carpet, a nice Persian carpet. All these threads going in different ways.” — Rabih Alameddine (07:35)
• On Humor as Survival:
  “A lot of the trouble, I think, with the world is that we’re too earnest. If we’re unable to laugh at... ourselves, it’s a sad life.” — Rabih Alameddine (09:12)

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:45] Introduction to the novel’s premise and main characters
• [02:26] Alameddine on Raja’s self-image and defense mechanisms
• [03:17] Banter and irreverent expressions between Raja and Zalpha
• [04:09] The friendship with Madame Terwheel and her generator business
• [05:52] Autobiographical influences and emotional resonance
• [07:21] The novel’s mosaic, non-linear narrative style
• [09:10] Humor as vital to surviving and understanding life’s hardships

---

Tone and Style

The conversation is candid, moving between laughter and poignant reflection. Alameddine’s warmth, wit, and introspection invite listeners to consider both the joys and challenges of familial care, memory, and storytelling itself. The episode is accessible and conversational, reflecting the lived chaos and beauty of Beirut, aging, and everyday intimacy.

---

Recommended for:
Anyone interested in modern literary fiction, family dynamics, Middle Eastern life, the role of humor in hardship, and the art of storytelling.

Transcript

[A]

Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbong. Rabih Alameddine's mom is 82 years old. Physically, she's doing great for her age, but her memory is going. It's something a lot of people with aging parents can relate to, I figure. And so he wrote a novel about a high school teacher who has to care for his elderly mother. It's titled the True Story of Raja the Gullible and His Mother. And and yes, Alameddine's own experiences with his mom influenced the book. But he tells NPR's Scott Simon that as a novelist, every experience he has, from the big emotional ones to the more mundane, everyday activities, make it into his work in some form or another. That's ahead.

[B]

Support for this podcast and the following message come from W.W. norton & Company, publishers of Dark Renaissance. The new book from Stephen Greenblatt, Pulitzer Prize winning author of the Swerve. Dark Renaissance tells the story of Christopher Marlowe, the playwright whose transgressive genius brought about a spectacular explosion of English literature, language and culture in Elizabethan England. Dark Renaissance is available now wherever books are sold. This message comes from Ritual. What makes Ritual Vitamins different? Ritual vitamins are made with bioavailable, clinically studied key ingredients and a patented nutrient delivery system that aims to help your body use the nutrients you're getting. Ritual's essential multivitamins are made with you and your body in mind and backed by scientific research, filled with key ingredients as well as the essence of mint so you can enjoy taking your vitamins. Get 25% off your first purchase when you visit ritual.com NPR Raja, who teaches.

[C]

Philosophy to high schoolers, has lived through Beirut, civil wars and strife, the kidnapping, the banking collapse, Covid and the great Port Explosion. But his most vexing test may be sharing his apartment with his 82 year old, sharp tongued, dope, smoking, an utterly charming mother, Zalpha, of whom he writes that deciphering her was a feat that would surely have flummoxed Hercules. My Mother as the unthinkably impossible 13th task. The true, True Story of Raja the Gullible and His Mother is the new novel from Rabi Alameddine. He joins us in our studios. Thanks so much for being with us.

[D]

Thank you so much for having me.

[C]

Why does Raja call himself the Gullible, the imbecile, the neurotic clown, the dimwit?

[D]

Self deprecation for the most part, it is how he sees himself. That's not to say that, you know, he Is not more than that, but it's how he sees himself. And he uses that as, shall we say, a defense mechanism, for lack of a better word, something that keeps him sane.

[C]

And I have to ask you about a phrase that he and his mother bark back and forth. We've got to be careful with it. You know what I'm talking about. But it's said with affection, isn't it?

[D]

Yes. Depending on the intonation, it could imply many, many things. But it is quite common in something that. Yes. Even my mother says to me.

[C]

Your mother says so?

[D]

Oh, yes.

[C]

Let's try and set up that phrase. If you could tell us. Let's ask you to read something from the book so we understand the phrase.

[D]

Okay. The first time it appears the mother is speaking, you're in extreme middle aged. She said you're not allowed to be old. That would make me ancient. But you are ancient. F. Your mother. Her favorite expression, which always sounded off coming from her, even after years of hearing it. Anyone else saying it barely registered. But of course, my mother saying it to me was always strange.

[C]

I shouldn't laugh, but that's hilarious.

[D]

Oh, God, yes. Are you kidding? That's the whole point. You should laugh.

[C]

Tell us about Zalfa's relationship with Madame Terwheel.

[D]

That's an interesting relationship. It's primarily an intimate relationship of two older women who found at a late stage in life a partner in crime.

[C]

And that's. Yeah, that's Madame Terwille's. What do we say? Vocation.

[D]

It's funny because I said partner in crime. Not thinking about it. But yes, it's a partner in crime. She's a. What we call a generator mafia don. She runs generators and she sells and distributes generators. And that is in a booming business in Lebanon because there is absolutely no electricity. And she's one of the best at it.

[C]

What do they find in each other?

[D]

You know, one of the things that was interesting to me about this book is the various, shall we say, loving relationships or the various intimacies in the book. I'm one of those who believes that we need different kinds of intimacies as humans. And one of the most important is somebody to listen to us no matter what we're talking about. And that is a big. And Raja, the main narrator, says at one point that he is his mother's confidant. But he's not sort of the complete confidant that she needs. She needs somebody who will listen to everything that she has to say. The way I look at it is it's about seeing someone completely or close to completely, and that's what they found in each other. Whereas no matter what Raja and his mother, however close their relationship is, it's still never complete because it's a mother and son relationship.

[C]

I have to ask, born in Oman to Lebanese Druze parents, I gather you grew up in Kuwait and Lebanon. How much of this is drawn from your own family life experience?

[D]

Well, everything I've ever written is drawn from my family life and experience. It's not a direct reflection like the mother in the book is not much like my mother. However. Sorry, it's quite emotional. But the. The reason the mother is such a big thing in that book is because of my mother and what she's going through right now. So, yes, that affects it and influences, but everything I do, everything I think about influences my novel. You know, I also played soccer for 50 years. Everything I do influences my writing.

[C]

Were you a striker or a goalie?

[D]

My primary position was on the bench, but I played midfield for the longest time. Yes. The beauty of being a novelist is that everything that comes across this insane brain of mine just goes into the novel. So, yes, of course it influences, but I've never written directly about me.

[C]

Your mother's going through a tough period now.

[D]

Yes, My mother is 84 and she's, she's. Her health is wonderful. She's just losing her memory and it's difficult.

[C]

The chronology in the story you tell here goes back and forth over decades.

[D]

You.

[C]

You write at one point. A tale has many tails and many heads, particularly if it's true. Like life, it is a river with many branches, rivulets and creeks. How hard is it to tell a story that way? How do you keep track of.

[D]

Is hard. But in my mind, this is how we tell stories. A lot of people, a lot of wonderful writers, they separate writing from storytelling. In some ways, the way that they would tell a story would be different than when you write. I think it's very different, but at the same time, it has a lot in common. And the way that I tell stories is usually the way that I write. And I have never told a story going from, you know, point A to point B. There's always many digressions going back and forth and up and down and sideways. So I usually say there are many kinds of writing, but we can divide them into, you know, some writing is like building a house one brick at a time. You know, you put this here, you put that here, and then you build this whole house. And a lot of, say, 19th century novels are that way, and a lot of great novels are that way. I prefer, for me, novels that are more like threads going this way and that. And what you end up with is not a house but a carpet, a nice Persian carpet. All these threads going in different ways. And you can follow this thread to go this. But in the end, it all comes together.

[C]

I'm going to be quoting that.

[D]

Please, please do.

[C]

So much of the back and forth between mother and son and crime boss and her friend the mother and so much more in this novel makes us laugh.

[D]

Yes.

[C]

That's okay.

[D]

Absolutely. You know, a lot of the trouble, I think, with the world is that we're too earnest if we're unable to laugh at the world, to laugh at ourselves. It's a sad life. You know, it's like, seriously, how can you look at what's happening in the world? How can I look at what's happening in Washington, D.C. as we speak? How do we deal with it, if not just make fun of it and laugh about it? The world is silly. I think that we can reach more people through humor than we can through, I don't know what to call it. Portentousness.

[C]

That's a good one.

[D]

Yeah. You know, it's like, oh my God, this is going to happen. It'll happen. That doesn't mean that, you know, obviously it doesn't mean that it's not serious. Obviously. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't be resisting or fighting or whatever you want to call it. But. But if you're not having a good time as you're doing it, it's a problem. Who was it that said, you know, if the revolution has no dance, something to the effect of if the revolution doesn't have dancing in it, I want out.

[C]

The True, True Story of Raja the Gullible and His Mother is the new novel from Rabi Al Ahmadine. Thank you so much for being with us.

[D]

Thank you so much for.

[E]

This message comes from Monday.com the first work platform you'll love to use. Meet Monday Sidekick, your AI powered work BFF that handles everything for you from daily briefings to risk analysis. Start your free [e-mail] support for NPR and the following message come from Indeed. You just realized your business needed to hire someone yesterday. Speed up your hiring right now with Indeed. Claim your $75 sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility@ Indeed.com NPR terms and conditions apply. This message comes from Charles Schwab. When it comes to managing your wealth, Schwab gives you more choices like full service, wealth management and advice when you need it. You can also invest on your own and trade on thinkorswim. Visit schwab.com to learn more.