New Work by Egypt’s (Revolutionary) Women Writers

From the march, photo by Sarah Carr.

In celebration of yesterday’s women’s march  (and its male supporters, who I’m sure will happily read women) I wanted to mention a few new works by Egypt’s revolutionary women writers and translators.

Sarah Carr: Sarah doesn’t yet have a book out, but she blogs at Inanities, where you can read both her biting satire and her vibrant reportage.

Ahdaf Soueif: Egypt’s award-winning novelist has been writing about Egypt’s struggle toward freedom and justice on The Guardian since Jan. 27.  Her memoir about the initial days of the revolution, interwoven with scenes from her childhood (Cairo: My City, Our Revolution), will be out next month from Bloomsbury.

Miral al-Tahawy and revolutionary translator Samah Selim: Miral’s Brooklyn Heights, which was shortlisted for last year’s International Prize for Arabic Fiction and won last year’s Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature, is out this month from AUC Press.

Mansoura Ez Eldin and revolutionary translator Wiam El-Tamami: You can read Mansoura Ez Eldin’s “Gothic Night” on Granta, in award-winning translation by El-Tamami. El-Tamami is also a very promising young writer: You can read her revolution diaries on Granta,  and her vivid “A Taste of Four Cities” was selected as a winner of the EuroMed “Sea of Stories” contest.

Iman Mersal and revolutionary non-woman translator Khaled Mattawa: Mersal’s These are not Oranges, My Love, came out in long-ago 2008, but you should still read it.

Also out now:

Mai Khaled’s The Magic of Turquoise, trans. Marwa Elnaggar:  Elnagger tells me: “just got my copies hot off the press last Thursday, but I don’t know if it’s in the stores yet.”

Reem Bassiouney’s Professor Hanaa, trans. Laila Helmi came out last month. I haven’t gotten a copy, but you can read an excerpt here, and it’ reviewed on the non-woman M.A. Orthofer’s Literary Saloon.

Forthcoming:

Revolutionary author Radwa Ashour’s Farag was recently signed on by Bloomsbury Qatar. I don’t know the translator yet, but here’s hoping it will be a revolutionary woman.