"This is a well chosen collection of some of the best Arab writers I've come across, with a broad spectrum of themes, well chosen and beautifully rendered into English."—Raja Shehadeh, author of Palestinian Walks
In November 2009, the International Prize for Arabic Fiction organized a workshop for eight critically acclaimed writers from Egypt, Sudan, Tunisia, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and the United Arab Emirates.
This bilingual volume brings together the pieces produced during this workshop, showcasing the creativity of a younger generation of Arab writers. A range of styles and themes are explored: from Egyptian social realism to a tale from the deserts of Darfur, a grim Tunisian allegory, family drama in Saudi Arabia, and a story about home and exile in Sana’a.
Includes a foreword co-written by Inaam Kachachi, an Iraqi born writer whose debut novel The American Granddaughter was shortlisted for the 2008–2009 International Prize for Arabic Fiction, and the Lebanese author Jabbour Douaihy, whose novel June Rain was shortlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction in 2007–2008.
Peter Clark is a Middle East specialist, a trustee of the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, and a contributing editor of Banipal. He has translated fiction, history, drama, and poetry from Arabic since 1980.