Published in 2005 in Arabic by Jaber, it tells the story of an architect, Saman Yarid, who is waiting for the United Nations' Mehlis Report to be released in late 2005.

[2] The protagonist of Rabee Jaber’s novel is Saman Yarid, a 40-year-old architect living in East Beirut in late 2005, who, like many of his fellow Lebanese citizens, is greatly anticipating the release of the Mehlis Report on October 21, 2005.

Throughout the book, Saman reminisces about Beirut before warfare and explosions devastated the city, when his family and friends still lived there.

[5] Detlev Mehlis was the head German prosecutor in the United Nation's investigation of the February 2005 assassination of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.

The Mehlis Report was released on October 21, 2005, and found that high-ranking members of the Syrian & Lebanese governments were involved in the assassination.

[6] While the book takes place in 2005, the history of Lebanon's Civil War still has a big impact on the way Lebanese society functions and on the way the main character, Saman Yarid, sees his city.

[9] NPR also rated the book positively, praising its ability to draw in readers into a different world while inspiring mourning for "this elegy for a lost Beirut".