Short Fiction: Zuher Karim’s ‘The Awakening of Abdulmonam’
“This is a confusing experience, not intended to be comical in any way, shape, or form.”
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About mlynxqualey
Posts by Marcia Lynx Qualey:
2022 Sawiris Prizes Presented in 10 Categories
“Sixteen artists and authors were honored at the ceremony, held at the new National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. This was the first year the Sawiris Award offered a prize for books for young readers.”
On the Launch of RiveArabe, Dedicated to Arabic Literature in Italian
“The problem we encountered in Italy is the absence of a site that could connect translators, publishers, and readers, so we thought of building our site in such a way as to meet the needs of these three groups.”
An Excerpt from Poet Salah Niazi’s Memoir: ‘Curious Passengers’
“I returned to the compartment and found my seat, which a Syrian now occupied. Beside him was a jolly-looking young man with a hunchback. In the seat across from them was an old woman wrapped in an old blanket, constantly sighing.”
30 Reads: A Month of Iraqi Women Writers
Inspired by the inimitable Nadia Ghanem, who pioneered the “30 Reads” series with a list of recommended books by Algerian women writers, we have put together a look at a diverse list of 30 literary works by 30 different Iraqi women writers, in Arabic and Kurdish, and where possible in English translation.
Focus IRAQ: Canonical Works & New Voices
We asked a number of Iraqi writers, translators, and scholars to put together a list of their highlights from Iraqi literature.
Launching ‘In Focus: IRAQ’
Our first focus is IRAQ, curated by contributor Hend Saeed.
Ali al-Tajer on Book-cover Design and Iraqi Stories
“Sometimes, after an initial agreement with the writer on a certain artwork, I read the text and then suggest some changes in the artwork, so I do some retouching on the work to be more suitable for the book.”
Jonathan Smolin on the Relationship Between Ihsan Abdel Kouddous’s Politics and His Novels
“My book really is an examination of how he participated in the coup ,and how he believed fundamentally that the Free Officers were going to install democracy, and—once he realized that they were actually installing military dictatorship—the way he dissented, in the editorials and in person, the way that he was jailed, and the way he turned to fiction to express his dissent directly to Nasser.”