12 Short-short Stories for the Shortest Day of the Year

For the shortest day of the year, 12 shortish short stories for your reading pleasure:

ALGERIA

“Bloodred Dew,” Mohammed Dib, trans. C. Dickson

EGYPT

“The Battle of the Rabbits,” Muhammed Mustajab, trans. Qisasukhra

IRAQ

“The Logic of Birds,” Luay Hamza Abbas, trans Yasmeen Hanoosh

IRAQ/ISRAEL

“Tantal,” Samir Naqqash, trans. Shakir Mustafa

LEBANON

“God, It’s as Though You’re Sewing a Dress For a Flea,” Hanan al-Shaykh, trans. Randa Jarrar

LIBYA

“The Teacher,” Ibrahim al-Koni, trans. Elliott Colla

MOROCCO

“Men Have All the Luck,” Mohamed Choukri, trans. Paul Starkey

PALESTINE

“Silence,” Adania Shibli, trans. Randa Jarrar

SAUDI ARABIA

“Oil Field,” Mohammad Hasan Alwan, trans. Peter Clark

SUDAN

“In the Long Shadows,” Jamal Mahjoub

SYRIA

“The Pride of Garbage,” Osama Alomar, trans. the author with C.J. Collins.

TUNISIA

“The Way to Poppy Street,” Rachida el-Charni, trans. Piers Amodia

Yes, this also ran last year on Dec. 21. Although last year, we had “Silent Ones,” Zakaria Tamer, trans. Ibrahim Muhawi in Syria.