Overview

Rituals of Belonging is a literary fiction novel about identity, exile, and the quiet pain of never fully belonging. It is written for readers drawn to immigrant fiction, stories of cultural displacement, and novels that explore what it means to live between worlds. At its core, this is an immigrant novel, but its reach goes far beyond immigration alone. It explores alienation, cultural identity, and the lifelong search for belonging. The story follows characters shaped by language, memory, and loss, people who learn what it costs to be tolerated rather than accepted. Written by an author who has crossed both visible borders and invisible ones, the novel captures exile not as distance from a homeland, but as something that settles quietly in the heart. Through lives marked by displacement and unspoken rejection, it reveals how the longing to belong can become a wound that never fully heals. From the raised eyebrow at the sound of a name to the familiar question, ""Where are you really from?"", the novel exposes the subtle cruelty of being seen as different. Characters learn to measure their words, soften their presence, and reshape themselves to fit spaces never designed for them. This is not simply a story about citizenship or migration. It is a novel about identity and belonging, about the exhaustion of explaining who you are, the pain of shrinking yourself to be accepted, and the realization that even giving everything may still not be enough. Intimate, honest, and deeply human, Rituals of Belonging speaks to anyone who has ever felt unseen, labeled before being understood, or caught between cultures. It is a mirror held up to the silent struggles many live with every day, and a reminder that belonging is often negotiated at a deeply personal cost.

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Albert Hadi is an accomplished author and researcher with over 25 years of experience in war zones and conflict environments. His career has centered on counterterrorism, extremist propaganda, and the global struggle over information control-issues that lie at the core of press freedom and media ethics. He has collaborated extensively with U.S. interagency entities, serving as Arabic Press Officer with the U.S. Department of State and as Team Leader of the Digital Engagement Team (DET) at U.S. Central Command. As Editor-in-Chief of A Word of Truth, Albert directly challenged ISIS propaganda and al-Qaeda's manipulative narratives, exposing how regimes and terrorist organizations alike exploit media as a tool of control and repression. His work has given him rare insight into how freedom of expression is defended in open societies and suppressed under authoritarian systems. Widely recognized for his analysis of press freedom, human rights, and global media regulation, Albert has published eight books in Arabic and English, as well as numerous articles and research papers on terrorism, radicalization, and the politics of information. His writing continues to highlight the urgent importance of human rights, freedom of expression, independent journalism, and protecting vulnerable minorities from systemic silencing.

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