On the Other Side of Mount Ararat is written by the mother-daughter team of Mariam and Elize Manoukian and is the story of life and struggle of one Armenian family in 1913-1915 in Van, Turkey. The book depicts the traditions and culture of the Armenians living and prospering in the city of Van, a bustling, thriving nest of civilization.
The story is told through the diary of the main character, Lianoush, a 13 year-old girl, who describes life and events in her city prior to the start of WWI. Her family is an upper middle class family with a patriarchal old Grandpa, devout Grandma,
Unlike the many other cities in Ottoman Turkey where the Armenian populations were decimated with little resistance, the residents of Van formed an organized resistance to Turkish attack and withstood a siege lasting 26 days. The siege ended after the arrival of Russian army to the outskirts of the city. With the withdrawal of the Russian army, the Turks returned but the city was destroyed beyond restoration.