Qamar Al-Zaman

Qamar Al-Zaman: A Novel by Ali Mahdi explores the dynamics between three fictional social classes differentiated by race. These races are the gray, black, and spectral-eyed people. In the case of the black-eyed race, there is only one, Qamar Al-Zaman. The black-eyed race voluntarily ends their life at 25-years of age, and Qamar Al-Zaman buckled down his fortitude and harnessed his ambition not to carry on the tradition. He wanted to live and live happily. He found life was met with overwhelming challenges when the color of your eyes prohibits you from venues, relationships, education, and employment opportunities that are enjoyed by the hierarchy of other eye colors, to an extent. Qamar Al-Zaman spends a great deal of time, energy, and effort coveting what others have, and the failure to acquire these things torments him as his 25th birthday looms.