A Translator’s Canon of Sudanese Literature
For our focus on Sudan, scholar, translator, and writer Adil Babikir highlights a few of Sudan’s most important literary greats.
Tayeb Salih
#BulaqBookClub: ‘Season of Migration to the North’
What is it about this novel that resists interpretation and demands re-reading? What makes it iconic? And why have Salih’s other books received so little attention?
Adil Babikir on ‘Mansi’: A Rare Book, and a Joy to Translate
“Mansi came out in weekly instalments, starting in 1988, before being collected together and published in 2004. It is a unique type of writing, a combination of biography, autobiography, political analysis, philosophical insight – with a great sense of humor and satire. Translating this work was a joyful experience.”
‘Dear Tayeb Salih’
This letter originally appeared in the debut issue of ArabLit Quarterly: Beginnings, published in the Fall of 2018.
First Bulaq Book Club Pick: ‘Season of Migration to the North’
All are invited to read or re-read Season of Migration to the North, look through other books by Salih, and join Bulaq on November 19 (or thereafter).
6 to Read on Tayeb Salih Day
“I must have been very young at the time. While I don’t remember exactly how old I was, I do remember that when people saw me with my grandfather they would pat me on the head and give my cheek a pinch – things they didn’t do to my grandfather. “
Available Now: A Translation of Tayeb Salih’s ‘Mansi, A Rare Man in His Own Way’
Salih went on to publish four novels as well as many other books, including his popular منسي إنسان نادر على طريقته (Mansi: A Rare Man in His Own Way), published in 2004, five years before the author’s death.
An Artist’s Homage to ‘Season of Migration to the North’
“Omar Khalil’s prints explore Salih’s 20th century masterpiece, a tale of migration from South to North and the pain of return.”
On Banipal’s ‘100 Best Arabic Novels’
“Usefully, the Banipal list is not just a list, but also includes brief introductions to both the works and their authors, as well as some contextualization.”
1 2