His stories were an attempt to bridge the vast distance that separated the austere cruelty of Abu Salim and the world outside. Perhaps, like all stories, what Uncle Mahmoud's recollections were saying was: 'I exist.
-- Hisham Matar (chapter 5 paragraph 1)

Importance: This quote begins to examine Uncle Mahmoud's motivations for storytelling, which presumably align with Matar's; storytelling and other forms of artistic expression are ultimately ways to define and articulate one's existence.

I am the son of an unusual man, perhaps even a great man. And when, like most children, I rebelled against these early perceptions of him, I did so because I feared the consequences of his convictions; I was desperate to divert him from his path. It was my first lesson in the limits of one's ability to dissuade another from a perilous course.
-- Hisham Matar (chapter 3 paragraph 1)

Importance: This quote alludes to Matar's earliest inclinations that his father's loyalty to Libya outweighed his loyalty to his family...