In "Before She Sleeps", which is set in the Muslim world of the twenty-second century, the Pakistani writer Bina Shah takes us on a dystopian journey into a future that may not be all that distant, where women attempt to take a stand against male domination. By Claudia KramatschekMore

It is his third novel – and the darkest one to date: in "Red Birds", Mohammed Hanif, the well-known Pakistani novelist and author, makes us re-think our Western notions about everyday life in a conflict setting. Interview by Claudia KramatschekMore

What attracts young people to IS? What can politicians do beyond calling for ever "tougher measures"? In "What to Do about Jihadists? A Policy Approach to the War on Terror", Omid Nouripour delivers an in-depth analysis of the current terrorist threat – and various potential solutions. Claudia Kramatschek read the bookMore

In his new memoir, "The Return", the writer Hisham Matar confronts the ghosts of his past: the disappearance of his father, the expropriation of his country's history and the shattered dream of a new Libya. Claudia Kramatschek read the bookMore

In Tunisia, the poet Najet Adouani is regarded as a courageous fighter for both the free word and women's rights. Born in the south of the country in 1956, her most powerful weapons are the beauty of language and the poetry of her images. However, when it became clear that she was a Salafist target, she had to leave Tunisia at short notice. Adouani is currently living in Berlin, where Claudia Kramatschek met herMore

In 1980, the Lebanese artist and writer Etel Adnan published the book-length poem "The Arab Apocalypse", which to this day is still regarded as one of the most important works on the civil war in Lebanon. A selection of some of Adnan's works has been translated into German and published under the title "Gespräche mit meiner Seele" (Conversations with My Soul). A review by Claudia KramatschekMore

Samar Yazbek is a rebel. From an early age, she rose up against societal conventions, demanding her right to lead a free and self-determined life as a woman. When the revolution erupted in Syria in 2011, she was on the front lines of the struggle, but subsequently had to leave the country because of death threats. Claudia Kramatschek talked to herMore