by R. Forest Malley: Harvard professor Walid Elsady is invited to deliver a keynote address at a conference not too far from his hometown of Damascus in the ancient port city of Yaffa- or, as it is better known in 2021, Tel Aviv. In denial of the risks involved, he arrives at Ben Gurion Airport with his wife and star student in tow, only to find himself detained without explanation. As he waits in limbo, Walid begins questioning the stories he has told- to his colleagues, to his wife, to himself – and the compromises he has made to succeed in the West.