Last night at Cairo's Manial Palace, Penguin International President Andrew Phillips and Dar El Shorouk Chair Ibrahim El Moallem formally signed themselves into a partnership that was more than a year in the making: a joint Shorouk-Penguin project that will bring out both Penguin classics and local titles in Arabic.
On Ahdaf Soueif and What’s Possible in Writing
Soueif manages, when you read her English-language dialogue, to let you know clearly what the characters are saying in Arabic.
A Poet’s Reflections on Tamim and Mourid Barghouti Reading with Ahdaf Soueif
Which is was why I was particularly grateful that the British-Libyan poet, surgeon, and blogger Ghazi Gheblawi recorded his impressions of last night's Tamim Barghouti, Mourid Barghouti, Ahdaf Soueif event via Twitter.
Who Has the Power? Reading Arab Women in English
The international women's publication Belletrista is, this issue, running two features up about Arab writers. One is: "Who Has the Power? Reading Arab Women in English," which explores the shifting power relationships between Arab writer, translator, and publisher. (Since I wrote it, it's full of the sort of gossip I enjoy: Who was offered $1 … Continue reading Who Has the Power? Reading Arab Women in English
Ahdaf Soueif on the Origins of PalFest
The Palestinian Festival of Literature kicks off May 1 at the Palestinian National Theater in Jerusalem; it will continue through May 6, and makes its way through Nablus, Jenin, Bethlehem, Hebron and Ramallah. But PalFest is not an ordinary literary festival; this festival contends with checkpoints, soldiers, and shutdowns. Authors are not there to connect … Continue reading Ahdaf Soueif on the Origins of PalFest
Ahdaf Soueif on ‘Truer’ Translation
The award-winning author Ahdaf Soueif was the last to appear at this year's series of talks by translators at the American University in Cairo. And Soueif, unlike her predecessors in the series---Denys Johnson-Davies, Humphrey Davies, Jonathan Wright---seemed to studiously avoid discussing translation. In the past, Soueif has been a vocal critic of much Arabic-English translation. … Continue reading Ahdaf Soueif on ‘Truer’ Translation
