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Mhani Alaoui is a rising star in literature from Morocco. See below for reviews of her two novels. Thanks to Interlink for providing access to interesting voices and perspectives! Dreams of Maryam Tair Cover Dreams of Maryam Tair: Blue Boots and Orange Blossoms by Mhani Alaoui Dreams of Maryam Tair is a tour de force, the most powerful novel I have yet to read in English about contemporary Morocco. I think that prior to reading this book, I would have recommended Leila Abouzeid’s Year of the Elephant for a novel about modern Morocco and women’s experiences.

Flyer for upcoming WiT Virtual Reading Series [[Update: Recording of this Reading now available here. The introduction of Melanie Magidow and Reem Bassiouney begins at 28:15. Melanie Magidow introduces the book at 29:45. Reem Bassiouney’s reading begins at 31:15. Melanie Magidow’s reading of the English is 34:50-38:00.]] It’s August, and time once again to celebrate Women in Translation (#WiT) Month! This initiative was started six years ago by blogger Meytal Radzinski with the purpose of focusing on translating words by women or nonbinary authors and working toward gender parity in literary publishing—so important to freedom of expression throughout the world.

Feb. 2022 Update: This story has been reprinted online at Medievalists.net here. My translation of a 10th century detective story by Tanukhi is published in the latest issue of ArabLit Quarterly (excerpt below). The theme of this issue is Crime, and this story is one of my all-time favorite stories in classical Arabic literature for its sheer weirdness. It is titled here as “The Missing Hand.” I was alone on my way to Ramla.

Images from Dover coloring book for Arabic Floral Patterns During this time of social-distancing, my husband and I take turns spending time with our preschool-age son and working in my home office. I’ve been doing lots of coloring, which provides the illustrations for today’s post. For those of you who want to study Arabic, or know someone who wants to work on their Arabic, I have collected all the program announcements that I have received for Remote Arabic offerings here.

Have you seen the QFI Infographics lately? These beautiful PDFs are free to download for teaching or for your own information. Here are some of my favorites: Arabic Calligraphy Arabic Dialect map Arabic Calligraphy Arabic Dialect Map Arabic Influence on the Spanish Language The Spectrum of Love in Classical Arabic The Spectrum of Love in Classical Arabic History of the Arabic Alphabet Other Titles: Currency Themes of the Arab World, Animals Native to the Arab World, The Traditional Arab Ensemble, Arabic Letters & Sounds, History of the Arabic Alphabet, The Arabic Language Root System, Flags of the Arab World, How Would You Like Your Tea?

The cover of Awlad al-Nas / Children of the People, a trilogy by Reem Bassiouney Dr. Reem Bassiouney’s latest work of fiction is a masterful, multi-generation epic set in Mamluk Cairo (1309-1517). The action moves out of Cairo at times, to Alexandria, Greater Syria, or the Western Desert, but it is focused around several historic buildings of Mamluk Cairo. There are also brief scenes from 2005-2017. For me, the heart of the book lies in the first of the three main stories, set in the 14th century.

This year in the MENA Lit Group on Goodreads.com we’re planning four group reads from Day 1, to be expanded if interest demands. Here are our 4 seasons of reading for 2020: Seven Days of Man by Abdel Hakim Qasem(January-March) | Set in an Egyptian village in northern Egypt in the Delta near Tanta, this classic novel tells a coming-of-age tale of a young man trying to find his place in the world.

An assembly of birds: The crow deciding whether the owl should lead the assembly of birds. Miniature painting from a 17th c. manuscript of Anvar-i Suhayli. Originally published/produced in India, 1610-1611. With this bright new year of 2020, I’m sharing a few literary/artistic picks (two books and one music album) that were recently inspired by Conference of the Birds (منطق الطير), the allegorical poem by Farid al-Din Attar (lived in Nishapur c.

What’s fun to read if you’re learning Arabic? (And if you like shopping during the winter holiday season, you can think of these for a friend who is learning Arabic)… The following are my personal favorites and go-to reads for Arabic learners and those interested in the Arab region: Non-Fiction Dreams of Trepass by Fatema Mernissi* *(first published 1994) *Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood *by Fatema Mernissi (1940-2015)

I’d like to provide here several draft syllabi for those of you interested in teaching and research of the following topics. I support an open-source approach to knowledge, and am happy to follow up on these resources in conversation if you have any comments or questions. Time Periods & Parameters of Arabic Literature In the field of Arabic literature, courses are usually designed as either “Modern” or “Classical.” The former refers to roughly the 19th century and later, with works considered “early modern” until around the time of the Second World War.