Texts inspired by Levantine cities and centers, serving as grand metaphors for a beautiful romantic era, retain a special charm. The great Syrian writer and poet Mahmoud Omar Khaity has condensed all the artistic, intellectual, and social brilliance into a novel that embodies every moment of longing and nostalgia for this time. He titled it "Two Grains of Wheat," with the complementary subtitle "The Duality of Love and Life in the City of Prophets." This duality is aesthetic and forward-looking, connecting the images of Arab cities like Beirut, Damascus, and Jerusalem with Istanbul. It opens up to moments that transcend time, its narrative structure interweaving the author's voice with those of characters, places, historical details, daily accounts, and beautiful memories.

The novel's events take place in the first half of the eighteenth century and tell the story of Dr. Hussam, who is writing his autobiography. He was born in Jerusalem to a father who was an officer in the Ottoman garrison. When he was four, his father was transferred to Damascus, and the family moved with him. Later, his mother and sister went to visit their sick grandfather in Jerusalem. On their way back, their caravan was attacked by bandits who killed his mother, sister, and the other men and women, looting everything. This bitter reality lived within the protagonist but did not stop him from carrying on with life: "There is a stage where we retreat into ourselves, afraid that air might seep into our thoughts and spoil them... Difficult decisions are like embryos that must grow in isolation from external influences...".

Years pass, the young man grows up, and his father sends him to his aunt's house in Istanbul to study medicine, accompanied by his friend Younis, who is studying law. Upon graduation, they return home together aboard the ship "Al-Shaqra," first to the port of Beirut, then continuing their journey by land to Damascus. Upon his arrival, the protagonist is surprised to learn that his father has left him a letter informing him that he has been ordered to join the Syrian campaign with the garrison, especially the artillery officers, to fight in the wars of the Sublime State against the Russian armies in Crimea and Islamic lands. The events of the novel unfold as the protagonist then travels to Jerusalem, works as a doctor, meets the girl of his dreams, "Maria," and together they form the most beautiful duo of love and life in the city of prophets.