Reasons to be Cheerful: A Poem entitled ‘Smile’
THE MOOR NEXT DOOR: Elia Abu Madi was a very well-respected Syro-Lebanese poet in the early twentieth century.
Ramadan Reading: As Recommended by Mahfouz
M. LYNX-QUALEY: So what was on the Ramadan reading list of the great Naguib Mahfouz? A little of what you would expect and a few surprises.
A Summer Tonic: Mahfouz’s Belief in ‘the Power of Good’
M. LYNX-QUALEY: While conducting some ‘centenary research’ I came across the lecture Mahfouz delivered when accepting the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Let’s Hear It for the Poet with the Weird Accent
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Son of an acclaimed literary family, Tamim al-Barghouti’s ‘weird accent and non-Egyptian features’ seem to be a problem for some in Egypt…
Aswany, IPAF, Translators: Daoud Takes Aim
M. LYNX-QUALEY: In a wide-ranging discussion at the Shubbak festival Hassan Daoud, the Lebanese novelist and journalist, had much to say…
Egypt’s Artists: ‘Bunch of Headless Chickens’?
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Egypt’s intellectuals are coming under increasing fire from their own …
Three Books That WON’T Help You Understand Iraq
M. LYNX-QUALEY: It’s one of those lists again. You know it’s designed to gain a reaction and you can’t help yourself so here I go with my reaction to books on Iraq.
Arts to ‘Flourish’ in a Ghaddafi-Free Libya
M. LYNX-QUALEY: ‘Censorship is good for literature’? This was a curious refrain from some East European writers. No way, look at Libya today.
The Silence of the Poets – And That Includes You, Adonis
M.LYNX-QUALEY: Poets have traditionally held a central role in reflecting the life of Arabs. Is that role, however, being usurped by other, more modern means of communication?
The Arabic Novel: A New Form of Criticism Required?
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Is Naguib Mahfouz the ‘Arabic Balzac’, the ‘Arabic Zola’ or the ‘Arabic Thomas Mann’? Who cares? He wrote novels in a tradition that grew separately from European and American authors.
The Top 100 – and Five – Arabic Novels
M. LYNX-QUALEY: The Arab Writers Union has listed the Top 100 Arabic novels. Puzzling, annoying, lists such as this are nevertheless fun.
Books are Best: A Luddite’s View of the Kindle
ALEXANDER MCNABB: I am a huge fan of the Kindle but, in the spirit of intellectual freedom, I am prepared to consider the merits of the book. Briefly.
Keeping the Meaning in the Language of Protests
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Much has been written about the ‘banners of the revolution’. However, it is difficult to agree a translation that matches their spirit.
Novels of the Revolution: What will they look like?
M. LYNX-QUALEY: With many of the ‘red lines’ now swept away novelists throughout the Arab world are free to touch on subjects hitherto out of bounds.
Five ‘Must Read’ Biographies from the Arab World
M.LYNX-QUALEY: It’s almost impossible to choose just five ‘must read’ biographies from the Arab world. When asked to do so I managed to limit it to six.
Two Words Every Inspirational Teacher Deserves
JAMES MULLAN: A theme evolved during the sessions at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, the debt every creative person owes inspirational teachers.
Countdown to the International Prize for Arabic Fiction
M. LYNX QUALEY: The award has stirred controversy this year as other years, with authors such as Gamal al-Ghitani and Radwa Ashour refusing to be nominated.
Lesson from Egypt: How to Reject a Literary Prize
ALI GHARIB, MONDOWEISS: A lesson in how to reject a prize yet ‘engage in dialogue’ with a regime of which you are critical.
Alexandria Library Needs to Be More Accessible
M. LYNX-QUALEY: Hailed as a symbol of ‘New Egypt’ the Alexandria Library has a way to go before it wins the hearts of Egyptians. It could start with the young.
A Message for Arab Poets: Stick to the Poetry!
M.LYNX-QUALEY: According to Syrian poet, Adonis, the Arab world is affected by a great ‘apathy’ – surely a criticism that can be brought no longer…
