Literature
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Stefan Weidner on pre-Islamic poetry"Poetry in its true fullness"
Stefan Weidner has gathered pre-Islamic poems and translated them into German. His new book "The Arabic Divan" revisits these centuries-old works and explores how their verses serve as a vibrant predecessor to today's social media.
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New books on GazaTurning point, failure, moral abdication
Four well-known authors address the global consequences of Gaza's destruction and Western support for Israel, or as one frames it: the "world after Gaza". Charlotte Wiedemann takes a look.
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Samia Mehrez's "The Many Lives of Ibrahim Nagui"Reframing a divided legacy
Ibrahim Nagui was a pioneer of Egyptian romantic poetry. In this new part-biography, part-memoir, his granddaughter Samia Mehrez offers an intimate view of his work and influence.
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Global publishing biasWho defines "world literature"?
German publishers of "world literature" still prioritise Western works. With limited translations, lack of media attention and stereotypes in publishing, authors outside Europe and the US rarely get the attention they deserve.
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Mahmoud Muna, editor of "Daybreak in Gaza""A book about hope, anger and anguish"
Mahmoud Muna is the owner of the Educational Bookshop in East Jerusalem and one of the editors of “Daybreak in Gaza: Stories of Palestinian Lives and Cultures”. The book collects testimonies and stories from over a hundred Gazans, documenting their lives before and during Israel’s ongoing war on the enclave.
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Nathan Thrall's book "A Day in the Life of Abed Salama"What a bus accident can tell us about the occupation
At once empathic and analytic, Nathan Thrall’s “A Day in the Life of Abed Salama” shines a light on life in Palestine under Israeli occupation. Highly recommended.
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New Choukri translationThe absurdist frame
In Mohamed Choukri's varied and experimental collection "Tales of Tangier" the hyperreal meets the bizarre. The off-kilter stories put forward by the late author seem to be set spinning on their edges, so fast and wild they might just fly off the page
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Kuzey Topuz and "Der Freund"The human as board game
In her debut novel, "Der Freund" (The Friend), Kuzey Topuz has created a complex weave of fragments and perspectives. The book is all about power and influence in interpersonal relations and at a societal level. It's a masterstroke
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Sherko Fatah's Great WishA daughter estranged
In his new novel "Der große Wunsch", award-winning author Sherko Fatah tells the story of a father whose daughter meets a supporter of IS and follows him to the Syrian war zone
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Sudanese literatureChildren to fill the entire earth
Stella Gaitano's debut novel "Edo's Souls", set between Sudan and South Sudan, stages an epic battle between the forces of Motherhood and Death
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Kurdistan + 100Stories from a future republic
"Kurdistan + 100" is the third anthology in Comma Press's "future past" series, and a fourth – Egypt + 100 – is set to be published next year. Writers are asked to imagine a moment in the future connected to an event in their shared past
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LebanonKhalil Gibran's hometown celebrates 'The Prophet' centennial
Nestled in the mountains of northern Lebanon, a museum dedicated to Khalil Gibran in his hometown of Bsharre has been celebrating the centennial of "The Prophet", the renowned author's most famous work