Arab writers – Equal Opportunity Reader

[REVIEW] The Book of Disappearance, by Ibtisam Azem, translated by Sinan Antoon

The weathered looking Kindle cover of The Book of Disappearance stands propped up against metal balcony bars, overlooking a hill full of houses.

(Buy this book.) One day Alaa’s beloved grandmother gets up, takes a bath, puts on a lovely dress and headscarf, spritzes on her favorite perfume, sits on a public bench overlooking her native Jaffa (also called Tel Aviv), and dies. Heartbroken, Alaa begins to journal his memories of her, and the memories she shared ofContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Book of Disappearance, by Ibtisam Azem, translated by Sinan Antoon”

[REVIEW] Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear, by Mosab Abu Toha

The Kindle cover of Things You May Find HIdden In My Ear, depicting a home viewed through a shrapnel hole blown in another home's wall, held up in front of trees at sunrise.

(Buy this book here.) On November 19th, 2023, the Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha was detained by IDF forces while attempting to evacuate Gaza with his wife and children. 200 others were also taken. Two days later, after extensive news coverage and outcry in the international literary community, Abu Toha was released and immediately hospitalizedContinue reading “[REVIEW] Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear, by Mosab Abu Toha”

[REVIEW] Shubeik Lubeik, by Deena Mohamed

The beautifully designed colorful cover of the graphic novel Shubeik Lubeik is held up by a Black woman's(my) hand on a white shelf in front of a white wall . A matching circular mirror frame and a delicate painted ceramic cup are in the background. The cover illustration depicts an Egyptian woman's hands reaching out in the darkness to grab an illuminated bottle containing a wish.

(Buy this brilliant book here.) “In Arabic folktales, Shubeik Lubeik is the first part of the rhyme a genie speaks once released from a lamp. It means “Your wish is my command.“ It’s been a very long time since I read something so captivating. This graphic novel, recently translated from Arabic into English, drew meContinue reading “[REVIEW] Shubeik Lubeik, by Deena Mohamed”

[REVIEW] A Woman Is No Man, by Etaf Rum

A photo of the paperback classic edition of A Woman Is No Man. The cover is black and red and depicts the a silhouetted hand dropping a book into another hand.

(Buy this book here.) This book is all about lovelessness, and I wasn’t really ready for it. When Isra is 17, a man from New York comes to Palestine to marry her. She has hopes, dreams, and an overwhelming desire to be loved, but when she returns to the US with her husband her innerContinue reading “[REVIEW] A Woman Is No Man, by Etaf Rum”

[REVIEW] This Is How You Lose The Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

ID: A black tablet displaying the cover of This Is How You Lose The Time War(sky blue background with red and blue cardinal birds reflecting each other surrounded by title text). The tablet is held in front of a leafy green bush by a black woman's hand.

(Buy it from Bookshop) This may be the unlikeliest romance novel I have ever read. Red and Blue are super soldiers in the time war, traveling across the 4th dimension bending history through sheer violence. Somehow, they begin a mocking correspondence, taunting each other while busy sinking Atlantis and riding with Genghis Khan to manipulateContinue reading “[REVIEW] This Is How You Lose The Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone”

[REVIEW] Rebel Music: Race, Empire and the New Muslim Youth Culture, Hisham D. Aidi

(Buy it HERE.) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ It is *really* hard to try and write a concise review of Rebel Music simply because there’s so much to talk about. In contrast to the polemics of a lot of popular writing about Islam, Aidi instead takes us on a cultural tour of music in and of the Muslim world.Continue reading “[REVIEW] Rebel Music: Race, Empire and the New Muslim Youth Culture, Hisham D. Aidi”