Sonallah Ibrahim: August Star

Sonallah Ibrahim's novel Najmah Aghustus (August Star 1974) was written over seven years, from 1966 to 1973, while the author was living in Berlin and Moscow and was banned in Egypt, with the first edition published in Damasucs in 1974. In 2003, Sonallah Ibrahim famously declined a government prize, pointing out "this government doesn't have …

Boutros Hallaq: The Arabic Novel and the Civil Uprising

During the first year of the so-called Arab Spring Boutros Hallaq spoke at the Arabic Circle at the University of Chicago about The Arabic Novel and the Civil Uprising (which is what he called the Arab Spring), and there's a recording of the talk he gave in Arabic here. Here's a summary/translation of the talk: …