Amin Maalouf’s soul carries many wounds. He is Lebanese. The son of an unstable country, which was the product of a marriage between small nations and conflicting views. He was born on the shores of the Mediterranean to a diverse and cultured family. From his father, Rushdy, he inherited the curse of journalism. It is a curse to those who practice it because they are obsessed with reaching the truth of things. The obsession with the future prompted Maalouf to dig into the past. It is a journey fraught with dangers.