Told from two generational perspectives, Losing Face is the story of Joey and his grandmother, who are both trying to find their place as Lebanese Australians in Sydney’s Western suburbs. Joey is 19, works part time at a supermarket and spends his weekends with friends, sometimes getting high, while he figures out what he wants to do with his life.
Joey has a deep love for his grandmother, Elaine. Now she’s a widow, Elaine’s adult children are busy with lives of their own, so she passes the time watching Arab soaps and playing the pokies at the local club. Their lives are ordinary and small, until one night Joey, fuelled by drugs, is involved in a violent and abhorrent crime. The repercussions for Joey and the shame he brings on the family threaten to undo them and all their unresolved issues, as they come to terms with what he has done.
While I found some scenes confronting and distressing, Losing Face captures a universality in the motivations and reactions of these characters. This is a story about the family ties that hold us together and tear us apart, and the inherited trauma and self-loathing that trickles down into our lives. This is a deeply empathetic story that pushes and pulls you between loss and hope. I defy any reader not to be moved by the plight of this family and their determination to keep going.
This is a book that reminds us that things aren’t black and white, and that if we want to live in a world where we care for and truly accept each other’s differences, we need to meet in the grey. I can’t wait to read what Haddad writes next.
Reviewed by Anabel Pandiella
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr George Haddad is an award-winning writer, artist and academic practising on Gadigal land. His novella, Populate and Perish, was the winner of the 2016 Viva La Novella competition and his short story Kátharsis was awarded the 2018 Neilma Sidney Prize.
George’s novel, Losing Face, was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Award and shortlisted for the Prime Minister’s Literary Award, the Small Press Network’s Book of the Year, and The Readings Prize.
In 2023 he was named a Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Novelist. He is a lecturer and researcher at the Writing and Society Research Centre, Western Sydney University. George’s text, sound, performance and installation based art has been exhibited at Firstdraft, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre, ReadingRoom and Metro Arts.
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