Arab Science Fiction at Worldcon 76

Worldcon 76 (the World Science Fiction Convention), is running from 15-20 August, and includes several panels on world SF, including one specifically on Arab literature with the somewhat wince-worthy title "1001 Years Later - What Happened to Arabian Fiction." The youtube channel of Yatakhaylon (They Are Imagining), a group which seeks to promote Arab fantasy and …

World Literature and the Vernacular

  While doing some research on writing in Egyptian 'ammiya recently,  I came across a satirical cartoon from the 20s featuring a peasant woman (or literally, bint-el-balad, daughter of the land),  and what might be called the Egyptian New Woman, described in the cartoon as al-fata al mustarjila sa'iqat al-automobile -- the "mannish" girl who drives …