“I strongly doubt that there is an “internal” literature or an “external” literature. If there are writers here working from the heart of the swamps, that doesn’t mean writers abroad are working from within an ivory tower, even if each certainly brings different experiences to their work.”
And I will raise the sheet
that covers your bed
so it becomes a flag.
In the end, the author gives us two possible endings. Do we choose to save Wadoud and send him outside Iraq to have a new life and a new chance outside Iraq, where he will publish his index? Or will Namir publish the index after Wadoud’s life ends?
According to organizers, “this conference aims to strengthen the visibility and access to high quality literary translations in the United States and to acknowledge that translators require the same training and skills as creative writers.”
“At least 6 parents and teachers came and asked me when the English translation of Ghadan/Tomorrow is coming out. There’s so much interest in it and some people bought it even though they can’t read Arabic, so that they can look at the pictures with their kids and retell the story from memory!”
“The other project I’m currently translating is called “the Mu’allaqat,” and I’ve tentatively titled the English ‘The Hanging Poems: The Ten Classic Works of Pre-Islamic Poetry.'”
After D.C., Taha will be staged in London, at the Young Vic’s Maria studio, from July 5 to 15.
She doesn’t shy away from addressing the big issues, she said, but she wants to place the individual at the heart of her social commentary.
“Providing a platform for Mamoun and other authors from the seven banned countries is even more important in a time when the US is shutting its borders and stoking racist xenophobia. But work like hers should not be forced to exist in a space defined primarily by the narrative of security. Eventually, I hope readers pick up these stories for their emotional intimacy, depictions of urban alienation, and blurred lines between reality and the imaginary.”
