About this Event
‘The bakery opens.
Bread rises like lungs.
I know this neighbourhood
the way one recalls a dream …’
— Nur Turkmani, ‘Hamra’, October
How have the places we come from shaped our ways of seeing? How do we shape a place in return through story, attention, witness?
Join us for Hajar Reads: Place, where we’ll discuss place as a living, breathing archive. In this final Hajar Reads of 2026, we’ll be joined by Hajar Press author Heba Hayek.
We’ll use short extracts from selected Hajar Press titles— (Heba Hayek) and (Nur Turkmani)—to prompt discussions and reflective moments. We’ll also use some short creative writing prompts to further think through themes discussed.
There’s no preparation needed for this session; just come along ready to listen and share!
‘If you lose an arm, your brain will think it still exists … The truth is, nothing is more excruciating than placeless pain.’
— Heba Hayek, Sambac Beneath Unlikely Skies
This session is hosted by Hajar Press and will be facilitated by Amber Obasi and Heba Hayek.
Heba Hayek is a London-based, Gaza-raised Palestinian author, creative and facilitator. Her first book, Sambac Beneath Unlikely Skies, won the Creative Award in the 2022 Palestine Book Awards and was chosen as a 2021 Book of the Year by The White Review, Middle East Eye and The New Arab.
😷 Access: Please cancel your ticket if you feel unwell, have flu symptoms or any other contagious illness. Mask-wearing is encouraged. This is to help look after and protect each other, especially vulnerable members of our community.
The site is wheelchair-accessible, but has a different accessible entry point. We therefore ask if you are a wheelchair user to please notify events [at] hajarpress [dot] com in advance so that we can share the entry information with you.
If you have an access question or need, please get in touch with us at events [at] hajarpress [dot] com.
🎟️ Tickets: Our standard ticket price is to help cover the cost of facilitators’ labour and catering. We also have a solidarity ticket option for those looking to support our team’s work to organise these events and keep Hajar Press going.
There is a free ticket option for people who are unwaged/low-waged. These tickets are limited, so please do not select this ticket option if you can afford to pay for a ticket.
As a result of capacity, spaces are extremely limited. Please do not reserve a ticket if you’re unable to attend the event.
Hajar Reads is a regular reading and discussion group by Hajar Press. Each month, we take a themed selection of extracts from Hajar titles as a starting point to imagine beyond the way things are and reflect on our responsibilities to the world and to each other.
Event venue & nearby stays
Small Press Futures Bookshop, 133 Copeland Park, London, United Kingdom
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