Azazeel, by Youssef Ziedan, was the second winner of the Arabic Booker (2008-2009). Critic Youssef Rakha was ultimately disillusioned by the book, which makes the hairs on my neck prickle. I don’t want another historical novel with compelling themes, interesting story, and clear writing that ultimately fails its central characters, a la the 2007-2008 winner, Sunset Oasis.
The review from Bidoun is more cheering.
You can also look at Ziedan’s website, which makes available a number of rare manuscripts.
Translator Jonathan Wright apparently finished his part several months back; my queries to Atlantic have thus far gone unanswered. But Spring ’10 seems like a rich time: Elias Khoury’s White Masks will be out from Archipelago; Sonallah Ibrahim’s Stealth from Aflame, and the Beirut39 collection from Bloomsbury.
Arabic fiction in English is, after this last turbulent decade, seeing a surge.