Book reviews
All topics-
Saudi poetry todayBetween nomadic past and digital present
The new poetry anthology "Tracing the Ether" brings together 26 poets responding to a rapidly changing Saudi Arabia. It offers a rare glimpse of a literary scene whose breadth has yet to be fully reflected in English translation.
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"The Fruit of Fire" by Haneen Al-SayeghFear and rebellion in the lives of Druze women
In her novel "The Fruit of Fire", a follow-up to the award winning "The Women's Charter", Haneen Al-Sayegh follows four generations of Druze women in rural Lebanon as they navigate religious authority, isolation, community and love.
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Author Taleb AlrefaiA window into the Kuwaiti soul
Does the German literary scene have a blind spot when it comes to Arabic literature? Abdulrahman Afif makes the case for the works of Kuwaiti writer Taleb Alrefai, whose socially critical literature deftly side-steps orientalist expectations.
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"Archiving Gaza" anthologyA vivid record of life before the war
"Archiving Gaza in the Present" brings together essays on Gazan art, literature, music and archaeology. By preserving the memory of a once-vibrant cultural world while confronting the scale of its loss, it stands as one of the most important recent books on Gaza.
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Islamic historyThe critic of Sufism who became its archivist
In the 12th century, the scholar Ibn al-Jawzi wrote "Talbis Iblis" or "The Devil's Deception" to expose Sufism as heresy. Today, his text is read in two ways: as a critique and as a captivating snapshot of Sufi teachings.
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"In the Land of the Forgotten" by Aliyeh AtaeiStories of war and the fight for freedom
With a keen sense for nuance, Aliyeh Ataei describes a life between Iran and Afghanistan, one marked by resistance, a search for identity and constant confrontation with social norms.
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Jina Khayyer's "In the Heart of the Cat"The Iran that Germany wants to see
A novel about Iran, full of errors, clichés and exoticism—yet lauded in Germany. "In the Heart of the Cat" exposes how readily the German market embraces stereotypes, as long as they fit readers' expectations.
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Zia Qasemi's "The Midnight Collector"Afghanistan—a restless country
A short life that represents an entire country: in "The Midnight Collector", Zia Qasemi recounts the life story of a man with a physical disability and reveals why Afghanistan has much more to tell us than we often believe.
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Books on Israel-PalestineThe perennial question of the West
New publications on the Israel-Palestine conflict: Alena Jabarine writes about inequality and arbitrary violence in the West Bank, Omar El Akkad settles scores with the West and Gilbert Achcar analyses the ideological roots of Hamas and Zionism.
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"Dis-orienting the Maghreb" by Sadik RddadPlural identities in colonial Morocco
In his new book, Moroccan scholar Sadik Rddad revisits colonial-era British and American travel writing, challenging Edward Said's view of Orientalism and its flattening of Maghrebi identities.
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Claudia Mende's new bookA century of Arab feminism
For over a century, Arab women from Tunisia to Saudi Arabia have fought for their rights, against violence, and for autonomy over their lives and bodies. In her new book, Claudia Mende amplifies their voices.
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On fleeing to GermanyPoems that strike a blow for freedom
The new collection "Sei neben mir und sieh, was mir geschehen ist" (Be beside me and see what happened to me) features works by 29 poets who arrived in Germany as refugees. Their texts, written in German, Arabic, Kurdish, Persian, and Ukrainian, provide insights into their experiences.