"Al-Zyzfon" (The Linden Tree) is a historical Arabic novel by Shahab Al-Din Khalil, set in Poland between 1939 and the post-war era. On September 1, 1939, as Nazi tanks roll into Warsaw, a mother named Helena Kaminski stands at the central station. Knowing she may never see her children again, she tattoos the Kotwica anchor symbol on the chest of each of her five children — a silent vow that they will always be connected, no matter where the war takes them.

Five children. Five directions. One tattoo.

Years later, the youngest — Iva — embarks on a journey across Europe, armed with nothing but a photograph of the anchor tattoo. She searches city by city for her brothers. The story reaches its culmination at Helena's funeral, where all four brothers simultaneously open their shirts to reveal the same anchor — a moment of silent recognition across decades of separation.