I. Rida Mahmood's Blog, page 2
March 20, 2024
‘The Silent Poets’: Three Poems by Da’ad Haddad
The iconic Syrian poet Da’ad Haddad (1937-1991) was known by fellow Syrian artists in her lifetime, but — as Ibtihal Rida Mahmood wrote in a profile of the poet — her work spread further after her death. “Although Da’ad Haddad published two poetry collections—Correcting Death’s Mistake and A Crumb of Bread is Enough For Me—in the 1980s, the Latakia native’s literary influence and renown were to be posthumous, ushered in by the publication of The Tree Leaning Towards the Ground and There is Light after her passing in 1991 in Damascus, where she died at the age of 54.”
Haddad date and often time-stamped her poems, which were usually written in the small hours of the morning. These three in the mid-1980s, a few years before her premature death.
Read the poems here: https://arablit.org/2024/03/20/the-si...
Haddad date and often time-stamped her poems, which were usually written in the small hours of the morning. These three in the mid-1980s, a few years before her premature death.
Read the poems here: https://arablit.org/2024/03/20/the-si...
March 6, 2024
Poetry in Translation: Riyad al-Saleh al-Hussein’s ‘War. War. War’
Nearly four decades after his death at the age of 28, Riyad al-Saleh al-Hussein’s work remains a vibrant part of the poetic and imaginative landscape of Syria and beyond. This poem is from the collection Daily Legends.
https://arablit.org/2024/03/06/poetry...
https://arablit.org/2024/03/06/poetry...
November 2, 2023
Thank you, my Jewish brothers and sisters
Thank you, my Jewish brothers and sisters, for standing up to those trying to appropriate your identity and legacy for their own political ends. I love you all.
A Dangerous Conflation
An open letter from Jewish writers
https://www.nplusonemag.com/online-on...
A Dangerous Conflation
An open letter from Jewish writers
https://www.nplusonemag.com/online-on...
October 26, 2023
Writers Against the War on Gaza (WAWOG), Signatories
I'm a proud signatory to the Writers Against the War on Gaza Statement of Solidarity, published on October 26, 2023.
https://www.writersagainstthewarongaz...
https://www.writersagainstthewarongaz...
October 14, 2023
IS 53 SECONDS LONG ENOUGH TO GATHER MY SOUL?
26 August 2014
Rana Mourtaja, 17, writes about staying alive in the Gaza Strip on Day 50 of Israel’s offensive.
Translated by Ibtihal Mahmood.
https://newint.org/features/web-exclu...
Rana Mourtaja, 17, writes about staying alive in the Gaza Strip on Day 50 of Israel’s offensive.
Translated by Ibtihal Mahmood.
https://newint.org/features/web-exclu...
August 10, 2023
9 Short Stories by Jordanian Women, in Translation
By: ArabLit.Org Staff
This year’s first curated collection is of short stories by Kuwaiti women writers, and our second is short stories by Jordanian women. For more Jordanian writing in translation, check out Snow in Amman: An Anthology of Short Stories from Jordan, edited and translated by I. Rida Mahmood and Alexander Haddad. The anthology includes works by Basma el-Nsour, Magdalene Abu el-Rub, Asmaa al Mallah, Manal Hamdi, and Julnar Zain, among others.
Read the full article here.
This year’s first curated collection is of short stories by Kuwaiti women writers, and our second is short stories by Jordanian women. For more Jordanian writing in translation, check out Snow in Amman: An Anthology of Short Stories from Jordan, edited and translated by I. Rida Mahmood and Alexander Haddad. The anthology includes works by Basma el-Nsour, Magdalene Abu el-Rub, Asmaa al Mallah, Manal Hamdi, and Julnar Zain, among others.
Read the full article here.
April 24, 2023
The Red Suns, Purple Moons, and Gun-Carrying Mice of Syrian Poet Da’ad Haddad
By I. Rida Mahmood
In her poetry world, the sun is red. The moon is purple. Snow is ubiquitous. Winter is eternal. Childhood is made too ephemeral. Love is a tattered draft. Lonely women have mastered the game of waiting. Everyone is watching everyone through stained glass—sometimes through shattered glass. A khaki sweater is a poor woman’s fluffy mattress. There’s a guard at every place worth the trip. Mice carry guns. Monsters steal love, not money or Solomon’s mines. Silent poets destroy the world. Books open their mouths, hungry for freedom. A flower blooms in the throat at the break of silence. Death dries up.
Read the full article here:
https://arablit.org/2023/04/24/the-re...
أنا التي تبكي من شدة الشعر
In her poetry world, the sun is red. The moon is purple. Snow is ubiquitous. Winter is eternal. Childhood is made too ephemeral. Love is a tattered draft. Lonely women have mastered the game of waiting. Everyone is watching everyone through stained glass—sometimes through shattered glass. A khaki sweater is a poor woman’s fluffy mattress. There’s a guard at every place worth the trip. Mice carry guns. Monsters steal love, not money or Solomon’s mines. Silent poets destroy the world. Books open their mouths, hungry for freedom. A flower blooms in the throat at the break of silence. Death dries up.
Read the full article here:
https://arablit.org/2023/04/24/the-re...
أنا التي تبكي من شدة الشعر
April 10, 2023
[THIS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS IS NOW CLOSED]
As the editor of an upcoming anthology, I am looking for personal essays by women who identify as Arab or Muslim (or both) involved in an intercultural, interreligious romantic relationship or marriage.
Submission Guidelines
- I am looking for personal essays (nonfiction) by Arab and/or Muslim women who married or got romantically involved with someone from another religion and/or ethnicity. Those involved with someone from a different denomination (sect) within the same religion are also welcome to submit their personal stories.
- Contributions can be made from anywhere in the world. Women living in their countries of origin, first and second-generation immigrant women, are all strongly encouraged to share their personal narratives.
- Submissions can be made in either English or Arabic; the editor will take care of the translation into English.
- Pieces must be previously unpublished. Simultaneous submissions are allowed but discouraged. If your piece is accepted elsewhere, please let me know immediately.
- Given the sensitivity of the topic, contributors can request to publish their pieces anonymously. But please identify yourself when submitting your work and indicate your desire for anonymity – and provide your preferred pseudonym.
- Submissions must be emailed as an attachment in the form of a Word document, with your name and contact information on the first page. Requests for anonymity must be indicated in the body of your email message.
- Length: Anywhere between 750 – 4000 words.
- Email your queries and submissions to: submissions.alantologia@gmail.com. Please allow 4-6 weeks to hear back; I will make every effort to respond promptly.
- Deadline: July 1st, 2023.
Submission Guidelines
- I am looking for personal essays (nonfiction) by Arab and/or Muslim women who married or got romantically involved with someone from another religion and/or ethnicity. Those involved with someone from a different denomination (sect) within the same religion are also welcome to submit their personal stories.
- Contributions can be made from anywhere in the world. Women living in their countries of origin, first and second-generation immigrant women, are all strongly encouraged to share their personal narratives.
- Submissions can be made in either English or Arabic; the editor will take care of the translation into English.
- Pieces must be previously unpublished. Simultaneous submissions are allowed but discouraged. If your piece is accepted elsewhere, please let me know immediately.
- Given the sensitivity of the topic, contributors can request to publish their pieces anonymously. But please identify yourself when submitting your work and indicate your desire for anonymity – and provide your preferred pseudonym.
- Submissions must be emailed as an attachment in the form of a Word document, with your name and contact information on the first page. Requests for anonymity must be indicated in the body of your email message.
- Length: Anywhere between 750 – 4000 words.
- Email your queries and submissions to: submissions.alantologia@gmail.com. Please allow 4-6 weeks to hear back; I will make every effort to respond promptly.
- Deadline: July 1st, 2023.
November 3, 2022
New Fiction by Basma El-Nsour: ‘The Scorpion’
By Basma El-Nsour
Translated by I. Rida Mahmood and Marcia Lynx Qualey
He squirmed a bit, feeling heavy all over, and opened his eyes. They were full of wrath, and it was with great difficulty that he raised his palm and brushed off the layers of dust that had gathered on his eyelids, struggling to move his stiff body. It wasn’t easy. When he stretched out an arm in search of his pack of cigarettes, he glimpsed his naked body, just the remnants of a thick white cloth that had been wrapped around him. He looked around with contempt.
“Damn!” he muttered indignantly. “What did I get up for?”
Read the full story here:
https://arablit.org/2022/11/03/new-fi...
Translated by I. Rida Mahmood and Marcia Lynx Qualey
He squirmed a bit, feeling heavy all over, and opened his eyes. They were full of wrath, and it was with great difficulty that he raised his palm and brushed off the layers of dust that had gathered on his eyelids, struggling to move his stiff body. It wasn’t easy. When he stretched out an arm in search of his pack of cigarettes, he glimpsed his naked body, just the remnants of a thick white cloth that had been wrapped around him. He looked around with contempt.
“Damn!” he muttered indignantly. “What did I get up for?”
Read the full story here:
https://arablit.org/2022/11/03/new-fi...
October 24, 2022
Fragile Freedom, Fragile States in the Muslim World
by: I. Rida Mahmood
As uncomfortable as it may be, the above allegations emphasize an urgent need to address a deep-seated lack of trust, stemming from transgenerational traumas, daily observations of global inequality, and a prevalent sense of indignity and disappointment.
Read the full article here:
https://themarkaz.org/fragile-freedom...
As uncomfortable as it may be, the above allegations emphasize an urgent need to address a deep-seated lack of trust, stemming from transgenerational traumas, daily observations of global inequality, and a prevalent sense of indignity and disappointment.
Read the full article here:
https://themarkaz.org/fragile-freedom...
