JEDDAH: Unraveling the Female Body in Yasmin Zaher’s Debut Novel, “The Coin”
In a dizzying debut, Jerusalem-born Palestinian writer Yasmin Zaher delves into the depths of the female body in her 2024 novel, “The Coin.” Written in a stream-of-consciousness narrative style, Zaher’s work is a mesmerizing exploration of pain and pleasure.
The novel takes its title from a shekel coin that the unnamed female protagonist believes she swallowed as a child, now rusting and decomposing within her. It follows the journey of an affluent yet displaced woman as she navigates life on her own terms.
Set in New York City, the story follows a Palestinian woman’s quest for a fresh start as a schoolteacher. The coin, a symbol of past traumas, resurfaces in the midst of the city’s dirt and poverty, prompting introspection on the protagonist’s part.
Amidst the city’s obsession with consumerism and materialism, the protagonist finds herself entangled in a Birkin scam with a homeless man. This subplot delves into the performative nature of fashion and wealth in cosmopolitan city life.
With a closet full of designer pieces, the woman uses fashion as a shield against societal expectations, questioning her true essence. Her Palestinian identity adds another layer of complexity to her narrative, as she grapples with displacement and the search for home.
As she navigates the city’s gritty aesthetic, the protagonist’s cleansing rituals take on a deeper meaning. Coming from a country under occupation, her body becomes a battleground for power struggles, a site of resistance against ethnic cleansing.
Zaher masterfully weaves together themes of identity, trauma, and self-discovery in a narrative that is as haunting as it is captivating. The protagonist’s mercurial nature keeps readers on edge, as she oscillates between cleansing rituals and dark, psychopathic thoughts.