What’s New: Overviews of Arabic Comix, 2016
“…in terms of political cartoons and caricature, I think what’s happening in Egypt is much more dynamic and compelling than the cartoons published in the Western press— but that’s another story.”
News
Winners of Mahmoud Kahil Awards for Arab Comic Artists and Illustrators Include TokTok, ‘Apartment at Bab El Louk’
“Egyptians Ahmad Nady, Ganzeer, and Donia Maher took the Graphic Novel Prize for The Apartment in Bab El Louk.”
William Hutchins on ‘The New Waw’: ‘To Pull the Living Novel Through the Linguistic Curtain’
“I am a sucker for any of his novels with a Sufi edge.”
Egyptian Poet Fatima Naoot Gets Three-year Jail Sentence for ‘Insulting Islam’
“[T]he recent surge in the prosecution of opinion makers comes in conjunction with a fierce security campaign launched by security bodies against freedom of opinion and expression, with the aim of narrowing the overall climate of freedom of opinion and expression.”
Cairo International Book Fair to Open Wednesday, Themed ‘Culture on the Frontlines’
“Bahrain is this year’s Guest of Honor, and novelist Gamal al-Ghitani, who died last October, will be the Cultural Figure of the Year.”
‘Using Life’: A Novel Excerpt on Trial in Egypt
“On the way, the streets were washed over and empty of traffic. It’s a holiday: perhaps the Islamic New Year, or Victory Day, or Revolution Day, or Saltwater Catfish Day. Whatever it was, the city looked drowsy and everyone was checked out.”
Egypt 5 Years Later: 5 Literary Works for January 25
“It’s still hard to know how this period will resonate in Egyptian literature, whether these days and years will become a pivotal creative marker — reshaping the Egyptian novel as the Lebanese civil war (1975-1990) has reshaped the Lebanese novel — or whether it’s just a historical moment among moments: remembered, noted, but not influencing the essential shape of Egyptian literatures.”
For Senior Dubai Officials, ‘The More You Read, The More You Earn’
These department heads can receive a “skill allowance” of up to 10 percent of their salary for reading a book from a list of 165 and writing a report.
Yasmine Motawy on the Growing Space for Arabic Literature for Young People, Globally
“Egypt, Kuwait, Lebanon, Palestine, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates have national chapters of IBBY.”