Twenty Two Years To Life took a long time to write. Based on a true story, it's set in Gaza. In working as a photojournalist, I witnessed the suffering in Gaza first hand, especially during the conflict in 2014. Returning from assignment, I watched a full feature article I had written - on this same story - having a large cod slapped on top of it and the words which I had struggled to write, crumble in front of my eyes. This is first and foremost a LOVE story. Then it's a story about life and hope and how we look at each other. That we are really all the same, with the same hopes and dreams and wishes for life. The greatest crime in any conflict is the torment of children, as it leaves behind scars that will never heal. The Internet is full of memos that tell us how to act around children and how we need to look after them but somehow the children of Palestine, deprived of any form of benign childhood, are forgotten. They're presented as almost unreal, without hopes and dreams, and just numbers. This is not true. My wish is that this story, What Is Past Is Dead, and the last story in writing will offer close and personal stories that will make a difference, albeit a small one, for the children of Palestine. No one should be treated like an animal and collectively punished and imprisoned. Although I have written this story from Gaza, and my support to the people of Palestine is clear, the story is not biased. There is no black and white. The people of Gaza, of Palestine, face their own challenges within, unfortunately they'll be very difficult to challenge under an Israeli occupation. Free Palestine. ( )

What a book, what a writer, very heart rending story. ( )