Literature
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Portrait of the Syrian writer Shahla Ujayli
Lessons in empathy
Born into a family of celebrated Syrian authors and academics, Shahla Ujayli is herself a successful writer. Winning the Jordan State Award for Literature in 2006 with her debut publication, "The Cat's Eye", Ujayli has now been shortlisted – for the second time – for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction. By Marcia Lynx Qualey
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Berlinʹs Binooki publishing house
Cultural rapprochement hamstrung by Erdogan
Set up to foster understanding between Germany and Turkey by distributing Turkish literature in translation, Binooki, a niche publishing house founded in Berlin by daughters of Turkish guest workers, is fighting for survival – thanks to Erdogan. By Ulrich von Schwerin
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Man Booker International award
Johka Alharthi scoops a first for Arabic literature
Omani novelist Johka Alharthi confounded regional literary pundits earlier this month when she carried off the highly prestigious Man Booker International prize for "Celestial Bodies". Marcia Lynx Qualey caught up with her and the novelʹs translator, Marilyn Booth, the morning after the award was announced
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Book review: Amir Hassan Cheheltanʹs "Der standhafte Papagei"
History of a revolution
Amir Hassan Cheheltan has spent years publishing articles and novels in German. His latest book "The Steadfast Parrot" has also been published first in German. Though the author himself lives in Tehran, the question remains as to whether it can be released in Iran. By Volker Kaminski
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Interview with writer Rahman Abbas
Overcoming Indiaʹs social divide
More and more Indian writers are picking up on the right-wing theme in response to the growing strength of India's Hindu nationalists. Among them, Bombay-based author Rahman Abbas, who writes in Urdu and who scooped India's highest literary accolade in 2018 for his novel "Rohzin". Interview by Dominik Muller
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Kamel Daoud’s novel "Zabor"
Algeria and a patriarch's dying throes
"Zabor", the new novel by Algerian star author Kamel Daoud, tells the story of the outsider Ismael, who discovers poetry as a means of survival. Stefan Weidner sees parallels in the novel with the situation in Algeria following the ousting of Bouteflika
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Interview with Indian-American author Fatima Farheen Mirza
"What kind of system are we trying to pass on?"
In her debut novel "A Place for Us" about an Indian-American Muslim family, Fatima Farheen Mirza conveys a universal and unique story, revealing the generation gap between the parents and their three children. In conversation with Schayan Riaz, the author talks about the lack of Muslim characters in fiction and moving out to become a writer
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Interview with Pakistani author Mohammed Hanif
Life in a war zone
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 Kramatschek
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Book review: Ibrahim al-Koniʹs "The Fetishists"
Intricate patterns of the mind
Imagine a book of more than 500 pages where plot and character donʹt matter, a giant multi-room museum piece that asks to be read in stages and puzzled over. Ibrahim al-Koniʹs epic novel "Al-Majus" – newly available in English translation as "The Fetishists" – is just such a read. By Marcia Lynx Qualey
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Book review: Abbas Khiderʹs "Deutsch fuer alle"
Simply making German simpler
The German language should be simplified and made more accessible to all. Then integration would also work, says Abbas Khider. His proposals sound strange at first, but they are not. A book for grammar lovers. By Swantje Schutz
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Isabelle Eberhardt
Writer, nomad and feminist
Rather than perpetuate the romanticised image of the Orient commonplace in 19th century literature, writer and nomad Isabelle Eberhardt traversed and explored the Maghreb with a critical eye. She not only condemned French colonialism, but also the established gender roles of her era. By Melanie Christina Mohr
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Christian Welzbacherʹs "Iran, Ordibehescht 1396"
Freeloading in Iran
"Iran, Ordibehescht 1396" is the title of a new book about Iran. According to the publisher, the "travelogue" by Christian Welzbacher is "a call for dialogue with the supposed enemy". For reviewer Fahimeh Farsaie, it feels more like a catalogue of tired cliches about the Middle East