Banipal publishes its fortieth issue, and by amazing coincidence the issue celebrates Libyan literature at this extraordinary historical moment of uprising and change in the Arab world, especially in Libya. Page 1 is given over to a statement by hundreds of Arab intellectuals, writers and journalists that is circulating online, a declaration of “full solidarity with the Arab peoples who have gone out into the streets to demand their legitimate rights”.
With 135 pages of terrific reading from both Libya’s foremost and emerging fiction writers, introduced by Omar Abulqasim Alkikli on The Libyan Short Story and Ibrahim Ahmidan on The Libyan Novel, the feature presents a wide range of works by 17 authors from inside and outside Libya, as well as a profile of the pioneer literary figure Ali Mustafa al-Musrati, and other articles.
The hard-hitting and compelling short stories draw on life experiences, on family tales, on loss, emotions and fears, dreams, travelling, exploring different cultures, growing up, relations between the sexes. They also have equally intriguing titles, such as Omar el-Kiddi’s The wonderful short life of the dog Ramadan, Ghazi Gheblawi’s The Rosy Dream, Mohammed al-Asfar’s The Hoopoe, Ahmed Fagih’s pyschological drama Lobsters, Najwa Binshatwan’s His Excellency the Eminence of the Void, Azza Kamil al-Maghour’s The Bicycle, Mohammed al-Arishiya’s The Snake Catcher, Mohammed al-Anaizi’s He was Holding a Rosary. Giuma Bukleb gives us two tales set in North London, while Omar Abulqasim Alkikli and Redwan Abushwesha provide much food for thought with their very short satirical stories.
The excerpts and chapters from novels include Saleh Snoussi’s historical saga, set in Ottoman times, Valley of the Wind, Hisham Matar’s new work, written in English, Anatomy of a Disappearance, Wafa Al-Bueissa’s Hunger has Other Faces, Ibrahim al-Koni’s New Waw, about the winged people – birds of the desert, Mohammed Mesrati’s work-in-progress Mama Pizza, whose hero is Ali Guevara, and Razan Naim Moghrabi’s Women of the Wind, which was longlisted for the 2011 International Prize for Arabic Fiction.
Banipal 40 also includes works by award-winnning authors from Morocco, Oman and Lebanon, respectively Abdelkarim Jouiti, Jokha al-Harthi, Abdo Wazen, plus an in-depth interview with Lebanese novelist Alawiya Sobh.
Contact Information:
For inquiries: samuel@banipal.co.uk
Website: http://www.banipal.co.uk/