Middle East/North African Lit discussion

Hello Keely, Tiff, Tareq, and Dana! welcome all! i apologize i have been very busy with work and haven't been as attentive as i should be and missed your introductions...but things are calming down for me now. :D

Hello ! I am Canadian, with a very profound interest in Middle East literature, politics, culture and, of course, people ! I've made very good friends from Iran, Lebanon and Tunisia in the past few years and the more I read and talk with them, the more I come to realize I don't know much (as lots of us do, I presume). I am very happy to have found this group and be able to share my readings and learn about different opinions and points of view. Oh, one last thing: I'm French, so please excuse my spelling and grammar, as I am sure mistakes will make their way from time to time.

Welcome, Miss Juliette! never fear...the group is run in English but we have many, many non-native speakers of English. and native speakers also make mistakes as i'm sure you must realize! :D

Miss Juliette , bienvenue!

Sorry my French is very bad ! my mother tongue is Arabic , and I use English here with ludicrous mistakes , so never mind this issue at all :D hope you will like it here with us !

Hello Everyone, English is my first language but please forgive MY grammatical and spelling errors.

I'm a librarian living in the UAE and I am trying to learn everything I can about the literature of the Middle East. My home country is the United States and, most recently, I read Spanish literature (in English) with an obsession.

I found out about this group through the blog posting on Arabic Literature (in English).

Welcome Kate :)

Wow we have so many members living the UAE , that is very interesting!
I noticed so many exchanging opinions about festivals/fairs in UAE, like Emirates Airline Festival of Literature" 2011,2012 also Sharjah International Book Fair . I believe there are so many cultural activities in UAE :)

I hope you will like it here with us Kate :D

I am very happy here. It's a little hard to believe.

I regret that I missed the Sharjah book fair this year but hope to be at some of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature events as well as attending the Abu Dhabi International Bookfair.

Hello. My name is Danielle and I'm very pleased to have discovered this forum. I came by way of Arabic Literature (in English) where I read a Q&A with Nile Daughter and my curiosity was piqued. I am a longtime book lover but I tend to only read western literature. I'm trying to expand my reading horizons and am interested in reading Arab literature and learning more about Arab culture (about which I think I am woefully ignorant). Not being sure where to start I am hoping to find a little guidance and discussion here! I'm looking forward to learning more, thanks!

Kate wrote: "I am very happy here. It's a little hard to believe.

I regret that I missed the Sharjah book fair this year but hope to be at some of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature events as well as..."

Glad to hear that :) please tell us about it if you attend any .

*******
Danielle wrote: "Hello. My name is Danielle and I'm very pleased to have discovered this forum. I came by way of Arabic Literature (in English) where I read a Q&A with Nile Daughter and my curiosity was piqued. I..."


Welcome Danielle , I was very pleased to read your lines , and I am glad you want to read Arab literature :)

we read many books last year and you can check their discussions or our bookshelves and choose what you like .

Now you can join any of the books we are currently reading , 2 until (March 1st ) and one until (May 1st) , so it is up to , what do you prefer to read in books ?

Nile Daughter--I like contemporary or historical fiction, and do like nonfiction but am a slow NF reader. I also love memoirs and biographies. By chance I am reading Girls of Riyadh right now as it was easy to get at the library, which I see was on one of your lists as a suggestion. This is an area that is very new to me, so I am really open to almost anything at the moment! I'll be looking through the older threads as well. Thanks.

Danielle wrote: "Nile Daughter--I like contemporary or historical fiction, and do like nonfiction but am a slow NF reader. I also love memoirs and biographies. By chance I am reading Girls of Riyadh right now as ..."

Great ! :D

Yes , " Girls of Riyadh "was on one of the polls , but we did not read it , we read "Cities of salt" instead , " Girls of Riyadh " is a small and controversial novel , I am planning to read it this year too , when you finish - if you like - you can iopen a thread for it in The Salon , others may join :)

Thanks--I may have to do that as I have lots of questions as I'm reading. In the preface the author mentions the publication of her book caused quite a stir. I wonder how realistic a portrayal it is, as I have not read much on Saudi culture to have an idea.

Hello all - I'm a new kid; my name is Kay. I studied Arabic in college decades ago, and lived in Saudi Arabia for several years. Now I'm back home in the U.S., working as a freelance writer. I write features for Saudi Aramco World magazine, usually on topics related to music of the Middle East and traditional culture. Full disclosure - I'm working on my second novel (set in the ME). Middle Eastern Music is also a great passion - I play the 'ud - the short-necked fretless lute of the Middle East. I co-founded and help direct the Arabic Music Retreat. I love to read anything and everything about the Middle East. Looking forward to joining in the discussions.

Danielle wrote: "Thanks--I may have to do that as I have lots of questions as I'm reading. In the preface the author mentions the publication of her book caused quite a stir. I wonder how realistic a portrayal it..."

Hi D - I read Girls of Riyadh - loved it. For the 'upper middle' class of high school and college age women in Riyadh, these things could well happen. It did cause a stir. At first banned, it's now permitted. This book opened the door for taboo subjects to be dealt with in fiction.

Welcome, Kc! I look forward to your contributions to our discussions! I'm also excited about your music. :)

Thank you, Marieke.

Hi Kay--I'm new here, too. How cool that you can speak Arabic. I've studied languages but nothing so complicated (at least it appears complicated) as Arabic. I'm finding Girls of Riyadh very absorbing and have read a few online reviews out of curiosity about the book. Maybe we can chat about it when I finish. Where would I look to find/hear Arabic music? Something else that would be new to me. (And sorry about my digression here--I suspect there is another thread for this sort of conversation--am still trying to find my way around.:) ).

I thought we had a music thread...but now I'm doubting myself. Hold on....

I found it! Here is the music thread, which is begging to be revived...

Welcome Kc ! that was a very interesting intro :)

yes...yes I would love to see the " music thread" revived ! I am also waiting to follow " Girls of Riyadh " discussion .

Is there a movie thread as well somewhere on here? :)

Sum Of Mind wrote: "Is there a movie thread as well somewhere on here? :)"

Found it right here: http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/4... :)

Thanks Miss Juliette :)

I'm a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin and hoping to write my PhD dissertation on modern Arabic fiction. I read (and speak) Arabic and lived in Cairo and Abu Dhabi for a number of years, and I'm excited to connect with more people who share my interest in the literature of the Arab world. I'm currently reading "Brooklyn Heights" by the Egyptian author Miral al-Tahawy and I highly recommend it to anyone who reads Arabic and can get their hands on a copy -- otherwise I believe the English translation will be out this year from AUC Press.

Anna

Anna wrote: "I'm a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin and hoping to write my PhD dissertation on modern Arabic fiction. I read (and speak) Arabic and lived in Cairo and Abu Dhabi for a number..."

Welcome Anna! I hope we can provide inspiration and the like while you work on your phd!

Sum Of Mind wrote: "Thanks Miss Juliette :)"

My pleasure ! Very interesting list you've posted, I'll have to book myself a movie weekend marathon very soon !

Miss Juliette wrote: "Sum Of Mind wrote: "Thanks Miss Juliette :)"

My pleasure ! Very interesting list you've posted, I'll have to book myself a movie weekend marathon very soon !"

Thanks! Looking forward to your opinion on the movies!

Thanks Sum of mind and Miss Juliette for reviving music and movies threads :)

Anna wrote: "I'm a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin and hoping to write my PhD dissertation on modern Arabic fiction. I read (and speak) Arabic and lived in Cairo and Abu Dhabi for a number..."

Welcome ! and good luck in your PhD :) I want to read "Brooklyn Heights" بروكلين هايتس for a while now , I got a copy but did not have a chance to !

My " to read" list is getting longer and longer everyday !

BTW , we hve a separate section for Arabic literature if you like to share any of your thoughts in it .

Hey Tareq, I've tried to download it, but it's not available because my location is Jordan :(.

My amazon account is actually still registered under my address in Belgium but unfortunately it picks up my location through my browser and it still says it's not supported. Thank you for your effort.

Danielle and Kc , we have a thread for "Girls of Riyadh " discussion in Here

Hello ,
Im from Gaza, and im new here, i really wish if i'v knew this site way earlier for that i can conversate and share thoughts on books i read and stuff like tht.
it's intersting that i'v started reading books just after i meet an american guy here in Gaza," he said ur english is pretty good and u must have read lots of english books before" ( i haven't actually :) ) he handed me a couple of books,ever since it's become an addiction.

Ahlan Aziz ,

I hope you will like it here with us :)

Only discussions here are in English but you can read in any language, go a head and explore the group, we have so many threads , I hope any of them would interest you .

Welcom Aziz -- it is so nice to have you join us. Our discussion threads remain open, so feel free to comment in any that interest you. There are seveal threads that have been active off-and-on for quite some time now. It's a great group. I hope you will like it!

Welcome Aziz! I'll just echo what Nile Daughter and Wendy already said...

:D

Thanks everyone :)

Yea! more members.

Hi everyone,
I'm Natacha. I'm new on goodreads and actually found out about the site through a beauty blogger (lol). I'm a huge book reader and always love finding new books to add to the already big list I have! I love literature on the Middle East, and some of it hits home due to my father's Christian Palestinian roots. I've only been to Israel and the Occupied Territories so far, but definitely hope to visit Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Turkey someday!!! Until then I look forward to discovering amazing books to take me there in spirit ;)

It's getting busy around here, isn't it? :)

Alexander wrote: "It's getting busy around here, isn't it? :)"

yes, it's wonderful!

Welcome Natacha! It sounds like you are going to love it here. Have a look around and ask if anything is confusing. everyone is friendly. :D

Welcome Natacha! it is so nice to have you with us :)

Very nice to have you join us Natacha! Looking forward to comparing books soon :-)

Thank you Marieke, Nile Daughter and Wendy for the warm welcome! I'll be sure to do all that when I get a bit more familiar with everything (the group has so much going on; right on!!:))

Welcome Natacha. Whenever you're visiting Jordan and need some help with preparing your trip, let me know. :)

Hi Sum of Mind,
That is very kind of you!! I wish I had known about the group sooner, because I just recently spent 3 months in Jerusalem and came back to California in late June... It was my goal to go to Petra but alas it didn't happen (and that was the second time!). I was very sad!! =( But I guess that means I'll have to do it sometime in the future ;)

Hi all! I'm from Oklahoma and spent two and a half years in Palestine working as a journalist (which was kind of random because I studied physics in college, but I got bored sitting around in basement labs).

The best way to get to know me is probably to read my book, Fast Times in Palestine, which is FREE today for Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00513NHNI :)

Hey Pamela! Welcome a board! Where did you work in Palestine?

I've downloaded your book. Hope to be able to read it soon!

Pamela wrote: "Hi all! I'm from Oklahoma and spent two and a half years in Palestine working as a journalist (which was kind of random because I studied physics in college, but I got bored sitting around in base..."

Hi Pamela,
I recently found out about your book and am very excited to read it very soon!! The title is very engaging and unique in my opinion, especially for a country such as Palestine, hehe ;)

Hi everyone..I'm British, married to an Algerian man. I became interested in reading books from this region after reverting to Islam in 2003, and then even more so after visiting my in-laws in Algeria..

Hello June and welcome :) I hope you will like it here ...