This May 2022, we launch our third “In Focus” section. For our “New & Inventive Voices” feature, we asked a number of Sudanese writers to put together a list of their highlights from among recent books, and for “Women Recommend: Sudanese Women Writers,” women writers give an overview of the landscape as well as their favorites by other women. We also have new fiction and poetry in translation, as well as interviews, essays, art, and more. Explore more special features below, with more from our archives on the left.
Writers Select: New and Inventive Voices in Sudanese Literature
As part of our special “In Focus: Sudan” section, three Sudanese writers put together a list of their highlights from recent Sudanese literature. We asked: If you were to choose 4-7 titles that would represent, to you, the most interesting books (perhaps experimental, challenging, or influential in some way) written by Sudanese writers in the last 10 years, what would they be? And (perhaps more importantly) why? Mansour El Souwaim صقر الجديان (The Secretary Bird), ...
19 Short-short Fictions by Fatima as-Sanoussi
Fatima as-Sanoussi is one of the prominent champions of Sudanese flash fiction, having spearheaded the spread and popularity of micro fiction in Sudanese newspapers throughout the 1980s. According to author Lemya Shammat, her "densely packed narratives seemed to particularly resonate with young people, who welcomed her mini fictions." Here, award-winning Sudanese translator Adil Babikir brings us 19 short-short fictions by as-Sanoussi. By Fatima as-Sanoussi Translated by Adil Babikir 1 We had an argument one evening ...
New Poetry from Sudan: Mughira Harbya’s ‘Three Songs for the Ghajar’
Editor's note: Within an Arabic literary translators' email group, there was a vibrant discussion about how to translate الغجر, with suggestions ranging from Travellers to Roma or Romani to transliteration. Translator Kay Heikkinen helpfully pointed us to Kristina Richardson's Roma in the Medieval Islamic World. In this instance, the translator, Adil Babikir, opted to go with transliteration. Three Songs for the Ghajar By Mughira Harbya Translated by Adil Babikir First: Only a ghajari knows the ...
New Short Fiction: Ibrahim Ishag’s ‘A Dinner with Mr. MacNeil’
By Ibrahim Ishag Translated by Nassir al-Sayeid al-Nour They prepare for the feast methodically, while still leaving countless possibilities and hiccups to chance. Today, the sons of al-Kabashi, with the blessing of Allah, have become people of wisdom, wealth, vision, and passion. Months ago, Osman, Masued, Hazim, Abdel Ghaffar, and Abu Zaid traveled with Qassem wad Sarur to visit his father in Shendi: Asim Wad Sarur wad Aljwab. They told him about how much Omer, ...
Looking for Literature in Khartoum
Max Shmookler -- who previously wrote about "How To Separate Mediocre, Good, and Great Stories for Translation" and his work in assembling a collection of Sudanese short stories -- now explores the literary scene in Khartoum in a post that originally appeared on Baraza: By Max Shmookler The stories in our collection span the roughly four decades since the publication of Tayyib Salih’s much acclaimed Season of Migration to the North in 1969. Some are ...
Recommended anthologies:
Modern Sudanese Poetry: An Anthology, ed. Adil Babikir
Literary Sudans, ed. Bhakti Shringarpure.
Book of Khartoum, ed. Max Shmookler and Raph Cormack.
Banipal 55: Sudanese Literature Today, ed. Samuel Shimon.
The Common 19, Sudan section ed. Hisham Bustani and Jennifer Acker
Online:
Words Without Borders: Coming into Focus: Sudanese Women Writers
All Posts on Sudan
Tayeb Salih: ‘Yes, the Nile Speaks to Me’
Introduced and translated by Adil Babikir “I was always fascinated by the river from my very early childhood”, Tayeb Salih once said. “And I think I somewhat understood what the river is trying to say.” That comes as no surprise. For all those who live in northern Sudanese villages by the Nile, the river has always had an overwhelming presence in all aspects of life there. That influence naturally found its way to Salih’s fiction. In Bandarshah, the river comes out as a mythological creature patiently whispering into the ears of the bank, which does not seem to understand what the river is saying. In the same novel, the river tosses out a stranger to the village, who eventually becomes ...
Farewell to Mohammad Al-Amin
The Echoes of Struggle and Resilience: Sudanese Bid Farewell to Mohammad Al-Amin, Musical Maestro and Emotional Virtuoso By Lemya Shammat Born on February 20, 1943, in the heart of Wad Medani in Gezira State, Mohammad Al-Amin embarked on his musical journey under the tutelage of his uncle. He died November 12, 2023. Mastering the flute during his teenage years and later venturing into the oud, his path in music took a fateful turn when he crossed paths with a music professor during primary school. And while he faced serious health challenges and visual impairments, Al-Amin's early education in music served as the bedrock for his impressive future contributions. Mohammad Al-Amin's legacy in the world of art extends far beyond Sudan, ...
Lit & Found: ‘Sudanese Novels Through Time’
Over at Kotobli, they have posted a new list; this time, of Sudanese novels through time. The list was curated by Sudanese-American writer Razan Idris ...
New Short Fiction: Alhassan Bakri’s ‘Field Marshal Trapped in a Bathroom’
When the field marshal heard the roar coming through the north-facing window of the spacious restroom, he was taken aback ...
New Short Fiction from Sudan: ‘A Bunch of Losers’
By Alhassan Bakri Translated by Nassir al-Sayeid al-Nour We were all naughty and talkative as kids, except Idris: he was extremely quiet. He mastered an incredible range of abilities, including fishing, crafting bird traps, peeling acacia tree bark for swings, and blacksmithing trucks and trains out of empty powdered-milk tins. He could climb trees with the agility of a monkey and run as fast as a bull calf. He could milk stray goats and turn that into instant yogurt by adding solanum. He contrived catapults for shooting sparrows and tamed wild donkeys. He had tons of other skills, too. He tried to teach us, but we were lazy and helpless. We were content to be admirers of his tricks. Photo: ...
