Mercer Islander Aida Kouyoumjian has recounted her mother’s story in the newly released book, “Between the Two Rivers: A Story of the Armenian Genocide,” published last month.

Kouyoumjian’s mother, Mannig, survived the massacre and deportation that took place in the Ottoman Empire following World War I. Orphaned by the genocide, she was reunited with only one sibling — her sister, Adrine — in an orphanage.

“It is the stuff of oral history,” said Kouyoumjian of her book in a press release.

“My work is ‘creative nonfiction.’ Every scene in the book is a story she told us. At the beginning, she sing-songed the loss of her family members into lullabies at bedtime. As we grew up, she incorporated the details that haunted her throughout her life. I heard the stories so many times in so many different ways. All that remained was to make it flow — the smells, the sights, how it came about.”

Kouyoumjian was born in Felloujah and grew up in Baghdad. She came to Seattle in 1952 and graduated from the University of Washington with a bachelor’s degree before earning a Master of Arts from Seattle Pacific University. After marrying, she moved to Mercer Island.

A reading and book signing will be held at Island Books in July.