“Unexpectedly Nabil stepped out into an octagonal courtyard. In the centre sat a beautiful star shaped basin. Two overlaid squares turned around a common centre. Eight-pointed. Around him there were twelve dark door openings. Above them were twelve dark portholes. Through a circular aperture in the top of the tall dome, he saw above him the distant paleness of Aleppo’s winter sky. He had never seen anything like it.” ( from The Octagonal Room)
In This Novel, called Like two Rivers, we are here inside the cover design. It is actually a floor plan of a beautiful medieval mental hospital in Aleppo, Syria.
I chose it because even when a building is culturally distinct, the floor plan is almost timeless and difficult to place.
It is also beautiful and really looks like a labyrinth. A symbol of this complex narrative
Nabil, one of the characters in Like Two Rivers, gets lost in this building and tries in vain to get out using his knowledge of math and mythology.
In that way the floorplan is also a symbol of the complicated human mind.
On the other hand, it mirrors one of the themes of this book: that our differences are superficial, but our similarities are deep and true.
It inspires you to wonder: What is this world? Is it truly my home? And… who am I?
That question is the seed of this epic story, crossing continents and spiralling through time.
I think longing for answers is the driving force of all the stories we construct in our search for truth and happiness. But often our stories become a trap.
Only the one who really observes and who listens to wisdom, makes it out.
Towards the end of the novel it becomes clear how words have the power to either suffocate the lives of people or to dismantle the importance of their entire narrative. This insight offers a chance for a complete understanding, which ultimately sets them free.
The images used are beautiful mobiles based on floor plans. They are the work of Danish goldsmith Kasia Gasparski, and represent famous churches around the world. Can you guess which is what? Have a look at her floor plan mobile website.