New article: Nihad Sirees’ The Silence and the Roar reviewed
ArabLit, 31st January 2013 Sirees’ novel depicts one day in the life of a writer in an unnamed city, in a country ruled by a dictator known only as The … Continue reading
“The sign of a civilisation in collapse”…
… is what husband called this deep-fried Mars bar: Then he ate half of it, and was converted. Deep-frying is now a Sign of Progress.
Knot: Persian carpets in images by Jalal Sepehr
I have nothing useful to say about these images by Iranian photographer Jalal Sepehr: solely that I am posting them for the sheer joy of their beauty and so that … Continue reading
New article: Khaled Furani’s ‘Silencing the Sea’ reviewed
Electronic Intifada, 22nd January 2013 It’s impossible to capture in one review the multifaceted richness of this book. It isn’t special only because of the range of topics it interweaves … Continue reading
Haifa’s ‘path of poetry’
This is the second (possibly last, not sure yet) post expanding on some of the points from Khaled Furani’s Silencing the Sea which I couldn’t shoehorn into the proper review … Continue reading
Daud Turki, Palestinian poetry and Israeli prisons
I’ve just – finally, after the long haul which can be the price of enthusiasm – finished writing a review for Electronic Intifada of Khaled Furani’s Silencing the Sea. There … Continue reading
Nablus: an architectural history
It’s been very exciting to get my first look at the real, in-the-flesh version of my good friend Naseer Arafat’s architectural history of Nablus. It’s a huge and beautiful book, … Continue reading
Seeing the Alhambra
The Alhambra (al-Qasr al-Hamra) in Granada is one of the most stunning buildings in the world. Its late-Islamic Andalucian decorations are breathtaking in their intricacy and delicacy, and the newly-renovated … Continue reading
Spain and Syria: graffiti
It may be easy to forget in modern Spain, but Franco’s dictatorship and the civil war are really not that far in the past; certainly General Franco was in power … Continue reading
New article: Hassan Blasim’s ‘The Iraqi Christ’ reviewed
ArabLit, 4th January 2013 “It is possible to whistle through these stories, enjoying their dry wit, breakneck pace and wildly careening references as they veer from 1001 Nights to Real … Continue reading
Exciting things to go and see at the Whitworth
There are two fascinating/lovely exhibitions (see applicability below!) on at the Whitworth Art Gallery at the moment. Both are on until January 27th, so plenty of time to go and … Continue reading
Bookshops in London
A cyber-friend asked me earlier today, on Twitter, for recommendations of bookshops she could visit on her first trip to London. Answering that in Twitter’s 140 characters would have been … Continue reading
New article: ‘Despite’ Palestinian art exhibition reviewed
Electronic Intifada, 2nd January 2013 Despite has been an important exhibition for many reasons. It is probably one of the largest collections of art from Gaza ever shown, at least … Continue reading
Jazz, BDS and meditation: a rant
This wasn’t the post I intended to write today, but someone (who is welcome to identify themselves but who is in a bit of a vulnerable position vis-a-vis the Israeli … Continue reading
Sarah Irving 