Middle East/North African Lit discussion

Welcome Angela :) such a great intro , I hope you will like it here with us .

I'm not new here - just haven't been around for a while.

I love that picture you've used for the banner at the top of the page. I've always admired middle-east architecture. Especially mosques - we have some nice looking ones right here in Toronto.

Carly wrote: "I'm not new here - just haven't been around for a while.

I love that picture you've used for the banner at the top of the page. I've always admired middle-east architecture. Especially mosques - w..."

Good to see you again, Carly!

Welcome Angela! I hope you like it here with us. :)

Carly wrote: "I'm not new here - just haven't been around for a while.

I love that picture you've used for the banner at the top of the page. I've always admired middle-east architecture. Especially mosques - w..."

Welcome Carly :) Glad to know that you admire middle-east architecture .

Thanks Marieke. I am looking over books for discussion. I do not know if I can join on this round, but hope to in near future.

Hello Ladies and Gents,

A fellow member, Maha, guided me to this group. I am very happy I've found you but so unhappy it took me so long.

My name is Delia, from Romania, currently living in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

I look forward to joining the discussions.

Congratulations to the moderators for the very well structured plan for 2012.

Best wishes,
Delia

Delia wrote: "Hello Ladies and Gents,

A fellow member, Maha, guided me to this group. I am very happy I've found you but so unhappy it took me so long.

My name is Delia, from Romania, currently living in Abu D..."

Welcome Delia :)
Your feelings made me very happy and I am happy to have you with us as well . Thanks for your nice comment , feel free to explore the discussions and participate in whichever that suits you .

Thank you so much. I just got the "Map of Love" today so I hope to be able to participate in this discussion.

Delia wrote: "Thank you so much. I just got the "Map of Love" today so I hope to be able to participate in this discussion."

Great , see you there then :)

Hi everyone,

I am Abderrahmane, from Algeria. I am new to goodreads. I'm still discovering... and I like it so far.

This group seems very interesting. I hope I can give as much as I can get from you.

Thanks

Abderrahmane wrote: "Hi everyone,

I am Abderrahmane, from Algeria. I am new to goodreads. I'm still discovering... and I like it so far.

This group seems very interesting. I hope I can give as much as I can get from ..."

Welcome, Abderrahmane! Let us know if you have any questions about how we do our reading here. :)

And welcome, Delia! I see I missed your arrival here. Apologies!

Welcome Abderrahmane , hope you will like it here with us :)

My name is Cassandra, I'm from the USA (Minnesota to be more specific). I first became interested in the Middle East/North Africa as a child where I had strong interest in Egyptology. I still very much love ancient Egypt but as I got older I have developed a love for more recent history in the region. I love studying the actual history, culture, and arts. I have a particularly strong interest in the performing arts and am a Middle Eastern/North African Dance Ethnologist. I'm also working (very slowly) on a degree in Middle Eastern Studies. I'm married to an Egyptian and have been to Egypt twice. I've lived ther for about 6 months mostly in the North near Mansoura but for a short time in the Cairo area (where I still own a townhome which ironically I've never been to or seen). I converted to Islam several years back at Al-Azhar and this of course only increased my interest in the general region. I took beginners Arabic in college but since it's made for business and not everyday life I lost most of what I learned (I learned things like how to say my name is so and so and I'm an engineer but not things like please pass the salt or we're out of toilet paper which would have been more practical and useful which I might have retained). I can read Arabic at maybe a first grade level but I don't understand much of anything because my vocabulary is limited and most of what I can speak is very specifically in Egyptian dialect.

Cassandra wrote: "My name is Cassandra, I'm from the USA (Minnesota to be more specific). I first became interested in the Middle East/North Africa as a child where I had strong interest in Egyptology. I still ver..."

Welcome, Cassandra!

No worries about language...all discussions are done in English here but members are welcome to read in any language they like...so, what i'm saying, Arabic is not a requirement but definitely many around here will support and applaud your efforts in studying Arabic, at any level. :)

Welcome Cassandra ! so many interests ...glad to have you with us :D

BTW , Marieke opened Cruise Cafe: Arabic Language if you would like to check it

I joined this group quite some time ago, but I don't think I ever properly introduced myself, nor have I been very active in this group. But I intend to change that! My name's Philippa, I'm 23, and I grew up in the Netherlands, but I have mixed Dutch/French/Swedish/Indonesian ancestry. I've been interested in the Middle East for quite some years now, and even attempted to study Arabic at university back in 2008. That failed and I quit after a year, and I have just finished my BA degree in English with a minor in Middle Eastern studies. I'm currently taking a gap year, during which I intend to continue learning Arabic, and in September 2013 I'm planning on going back to university to do an MA in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies.

Philippa wrote: "I joined this group quite some time ago, but I don't think I ever properly introduced myself, nor have I been very active in this group. But I intend to change that! My name's Philippa, I'm 23, and..."

Wow :D Welcome again Philippa !

Hi all,
I'm glad to meet you all here, it is good to get to know you through goodreads..

My name is Aya, I'm from Jordan. I joined goodreads last year, and I find it very useful..

I'm not that active in this group, but I hope to improve :)

I'm interested in books related to the region, but mostly I'm interested in books related to Palestine and the Palestinian cause. I believe that we need to know about our cause so we are able to defend it. I have too many books on my list 'to read', and I hope I will be able to read them all someday.

Again, I'm happy to be a member of this group..

Aya

Philippa wrote: "I joined this group quite some time ago, but I don't think I ever properly introduced myself, nor have I been very active in this group. But I intend to change that! My name's Philippa, I'm 23, and..."

wow Philippa! i'm glad you decided to introduce yourself. ;) and hopefully we can help fill your gap year with fun and interesting things. :)

Aya wrote: "Hi all,
I'm glad to meet you all here, it is good to get to know you through goodreads..

My name is Aya, I'm from Jordan. I joined goodreads last year, and I find it very useful..

I'm not that ac..."

welcome Aya! i hope you find a nice home here. we do read a lot about Palestine in this group, but also a lot of other things.

but right now we are reading
The Question of Palestine and Gate of the Sun...hopefully you'll join our discussions? :)

and btw: my long-time arabic tutor is from Jordan, so i have a special spot in my heart for your country.

Aya wrote: "Hi all,
I'm glad to meet you all here, it is good to get to know you through goodreads..

My name is Aya, I'm from Jordan. I joined goodreads last year, and I find it very useful..

I'm not that ac..."

Welcome Aya :D (Nawarty)

Thanks for the warm welcome Marieke and ND :)

And Marieke, I'm just really curious about one thing. You're American if I'm not mistaken, right? Do you happen to have any Dutch ancestry or something? I'm asking because of your very Dutch name :)

Hahaha my very Dutch name! I may have at least one Dutch ancestor who probably wasn't actually Dutch but more likely a religious refugee from France, but that has nothing to do with my name. ;)

Both sides of my family can trace back to 1600s Massachusetts Colony. My ancestry isn't totally clear: definitely English, Irish, French, most likely American Indian on my dad's side and probably many other groups who came to New England over the centuries. But my dad was in the Army and was stationed for five years in Germany. My parents didn't have a girl's name picked out for me but they liked that song "Marieke." I was almost named Mercedes, which makes me laugh. My uncle married a German woman and so my cousin is German...I decided to learn German because of her so I lived in Germany for a year between high school and college. I was in Aachen, so people were very confused about my name and lime to tell me that it is Dutch, which made me laugh. One time I was in a cafe in Belgium with an American friend and speaking English but the waitress heard my friend say my name so she was super curious about how an American got this name. It was a really nice and funny conversation. :)

(I'm typing on my phone so please forgive silly looking typos!)

Marieke wrote: "Hahaha my very Dutch name! I may have at least one Dutch ancestor who probably wasn't actually Dutch but more likely a religious refugee from France, but that has nothing to do with my name. ;)

Bo..."

That's definitely an interesting story! (And I'm assuming you were referring to the Jacques Brel song). The name just stood out to me because to me it's a very ordinary name (I know at least 3 people called Marieke), but I am aware of the fact that it's not a well known name outside of the Dutch speaking world.

It's definitely an uncommon name in the US! I know of others and I have one online friend named Marieke...usually though when I meet someone else with my name she spells it Marika.

Funny: They like to put our names on our cups at Starbucks so I always tell them to spell it however they like. Then I take a picture of my cup and post it on Facebook. I have quite a collection of my name totally misspelled.

Oh--around the time I was born an American folk singer had recorded a cover of Jacques Brel's song, so it's actually that version that my parents were listening to. I played the Brel version for my mom a couple of years ago and she didn't like it. She said if she had heard that she never would have named me Marieke! Hahaha!

Marieke wrote: "It's definitely an uncommon name in the US! I know of others and I have one online friend named Marieke...usually though when I meet someone else with my name she spells it Marika.

Funny: They lik..."

I have to admit I have never heard the American cover, but I'll have a look on YouTube!

Getting your name spelled correctly at Starbucks is a pain at any rate though. I've a name that's quite well known among English speakers, and still nobody's managed to spell it correctly either, but I can imagine that with your name it's even worse.

The singer is Judy Collins...she's not nearly as intense as Jacques Brel. ;)

Yes, I can see how your name could cause problems: Ph or F? Two L's or one? Same problem with p. and then all the vowels lol.

Hi Aya,
Glad your here. I have a soft spot for Jordan. I was able to go to Jordan twice now, being from the States that is a big leap. The people were kind, the food was good, and the places we went to were wonderfully historical. Welcome.
Angela

Angela wrote: "Hi Aya,
Glad your here. I have a soft spot for Jordan. I was able to go to Jordan twice now, being from the States that is a big leap. The people were kind, the food was good, and the places we we..."

JEALOUS! :)

So sorry Marieke, but BOTH were a great trip,(not that I want to make you more jealous :)).
Our driver was Muslim, our guide was Jordanian Christian on one trip, it was Ramadan during that one.

Hi all,

I'm following Marieke over from the Great African Reads group. I'm from the US. I work in humanitarian aid and focus mainly on agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa, but I have some academic background in Islamic feminisms and personal commitment to Palestine solidarity and anti-war organizing. When not at work, I'm an anarchist activist focusing on projects in mutual aid and solidarity (I moderate the Anarchist and Radical Book Club). I'm excited to take part in one or both tours, but for time's sake might participate mostly on the books you read from North Africa.

Millicent wrote: "Hi all,

I'm following Marieke over from the Great African Reads group. I'm from the US. I work in humanitarian aid and focus mainly on agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa, but I have some academic..."

Very interesting intro !Welcome Millicent , I hope you will like it here .BTW , Now I am trying to learn more about Anarchism (there are so many things in this world to learn ) :)

Wow..i just saw your intro Millicent! wth?!

anyway, obviously i'm glad you're here. :)

Hello, I'm Taylor. I am Ethiopian and German. Interesting mixture, right? I love reading cultural and religion themed books, especially taking place in India, Afghanistan, and Africa.

Welcome Taylor!

Hello everybody!
I'm Finnish/Egyptian book lover. Living in Egypt. Just last autumn I got myself a Kindle reader which have changed my life for so much better. I love to read all kinds of books and also very interested about books which describe social and cultural differences and nuances between regions.

Welcome Taylor and Teija! I hope you both like it here with us.

Welcome Teija!

Welcome Taylor and Teija! :)

Thank you for a welcoming me :)

Let us know if you need any help navigating the group...we are doing a regional tour, which I hope interests you!

Hello,
I am glad to have found this group!
I am Canadian, of Syrian origin. I interested in all kinds of Middle-eastern lit but I'm particularly interested in Levantine fiction. Books set in Syria et al.
Any suggestions would be great. I thought I saw a topic on Levant lit but can no longer find it.
I am currently helping my cousin write his senior year thesis on the history of Greater Syria and would love to give a historical fiction perspective to the paper.

ya Zaina,
Welcome! Here is the original discussion of readings for Levant countries:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...

Here are some books set in Syria:
The HedgehogBreaking Knees: Modern Arabic Short Stories from SyriaTigers On The Tenth Day And Other Stories

Sabriya: Damascus Bitter SweetMy Grandfather's Tale

There are others in just Arabic, but all of these are available in English translation. I hope you find something useful.

Welcome Zaina :)

Welcome Zaina :)

Welcome Zaina! Good to have you with us!

Welcome Zaina,

I Can recommend a few books by a Syrian author that could be of interest to you,

Rafik Schami's The Dark Side of Love and Damascus Nights. They have everything good stories should have. Also Syrian history.

Enjoy whatever reads you find on your way ;)

Hi Libby! I'm glad you found us and i hope you find lots of inspiration in this group. there are sooo many books to read! :)

Welcome to the group Libby.