Brotherly Enemies (Memoirs of a Pro-American) (Volume 1)

Brotherly Enemies is a story of a young man growing up in the arms of one of the most turbulent regions in the world. From the time Elie Nakouzi was five years old, the environment in his home of Beirut, Lebanon was riddled with tension and death. As a young man, Elie watched his once peaceful community of Furn el Chebbak turn from pleasant and thriving into a warzone, with Christian and Muslim neighbors becoming enemies in a civil war that would span the next 30 years. As a boy, Elie’s main concern was understanding the differences that tore him from his Muslim friends and caused his family and neighbors to fear the worst. He focused on American culture, believing that the free States was the life he desired. He began to refer to himself as a pro-American and sought to be part of the culture he so admired one day. The Syrian occupation of Lebanon brought new terrors, as Beirut became separated into two factions, the west for the Muslims and the east for the Christians. Bearing witness to assassinations, other devastating crimes of war, and abominable displays of inhumanity, Elie found himself becoming immune to the constant barrage of death and hate and angry at the lack of protection from the rest of the world. This anger led to many questions, and once he discovered the question mark, Elie knew his future would always depend on it. As he grew older, his passion of journalism grew due a desire to denounce leaders such as President Hafez al-Assad, Saddam Hussein, and other brutal dictators. Brotherly Enemies begins the tale of Elie and takes the reader through the start of his personal revolution as a radio host, television talk show host, and eventually a serious journalist breaking the barriers of freedom of speech and inflaming the ruling dictatorship. He experiences threats against his life and his family, but he also enjoys the splendors of success, becoming one of the most well-recognized journalists in Lebanon and a voice of the resistance, often rubbing elbows with some of the most powerful people in world, including members of the Saudi royal family. But money, fame, women, alcohol, and a rampant appetite for luxury were always at odds with Elie’s true passion: the liberation of his country. This is the true story of one man’s perspective of war and his mission to bring it down, even if his voice was the only one being heard.