In a makeshift hospital in a refugee camp on the outskirts of Beirut, Yunes, an aging Palestinian freedom fighter, lies in a coma. Keeping vigil at the old man's bedside is his spiritual son, Khalil, who nurses Yunes, refusing to admit that his hero may never regain consciousness. Like a modern-day Scheherazade, Khalil relates the story of a Palestinian exile while also recalling Yunes's own extraordinary life and his love for his wife, whom he meets secretly over the years at Bab al-Shams, the Gate of the sun.

"Originally published with the title Bab al-Shams by Dr-al-Adâb, Beirut, 1998.