Aha! You're expecting me to say Barghouti's I Was Born There, I Was Born Here, which I would, except you already know you want to read Barghouti's follow-up memoir, which should be out in English next fall from AUC Press. (The translation, I'm told, is being done by Humphrey Davies.)
Update on Barghouti’s /I Was Born There, I Was Born Here/
Bibliophiles take note: Palestinian poet Mourid Bargouti's new memoir is set to come out in in English next fall from American University in Cairo Press. The translation of Bargouti's second memoir, I Was Born There, I Was Born Here (ولدت هناك، ولدت هنا), is being done by Humphrey Davies. Davies also translated Elias Khoury's Gate … Continue reading Update on Barghouti’s /I Was Born There, I Was Born Here/
Don’t Have a Father’s Day Gift? (Yes, Of Course, Literary Suggestions)
If your dad likes complex but ultimately heartwarming father-son relationships in (great) literature: Stealth, by Sonallah Ibrahim, has a touching father-son relationship at its core. It's also an excellent, very readable book. Although some accused Ibrahim of writing autobiography (it hews closely to his own experience growing up in Cairo in the post-WWII era), this … Continue reading Don’t Have a Father’s Day Gift? (Yes, Of Course, Literary Suggestions)
Reading Challenge Update: Shakir Mustafa’s Top 5
Shakir Mustafa (not, you know, Mustafa Shakir) has finally turned in his reading challenge picks. Mustafa is the editor and translator of the excellent Contemporary Iraqi Fiction: An Anthology. I found many gems in the collection, but was a particular fan of the first two stories: "The Turtle Grandmother" and "Yusuf's Tales," by Muhammad Khodayyir. … Continue reading Reading Challenge Update: Shakir Mustafa’s Top 5
