Reworlding Ramallah

by Callum Copley (Editor), Hilda Moucharrafieh, Shayma Nader

Critical science fiction, on its most basic level, is an opportunity to experiment with new ways of existing in the world; imaging different, economic, political and social structures. Within its pages, science fiction holds the space to test ambitious projects without the fear of failure. Reading and writing science fiction is, in all its imaginative and disruptive potential, something which I believe is valuable to anyone living under conditions which they wish to change.

‘Reworlding’ is the name given to a concerted effort to reimagine the places and spaces we inhabit, by generating a multiplicity of futures with which to affect the present positively. Reworlding takes the notion of worldbuilding beyond any ostensible purpose as art or entertainment and deploys aspects of it as a radical tool to instigate change in the world.

The stories compiled in this book were the outcome of a writing workshop series led by Callum Copley in a town called Birzeit, a few miles north of Ramallah, Palestine. From alien experiments, to fortune-tellers and telepathic conspiracies; the stories compiled here represent visions of the West Bank and beyond, reworlding both the local and the interplanetary. Although the contributions in the collection vary in form, length and style, all join a rapidly growing but comparatively small niche of Palestinian science fiction.

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies

164 pages, Paperback

Published October 19, 2019

Reviews

[suzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

"His heart, instead, was overrun by a sweet, unusual warmth as he witnessed her carrying a whole fatherland in her lap."

Free Palestine <3

[Owen Hatherley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really interesting project with some mixed results, but never less than enjoyable, while the final story is both superb and extremely timely.

[Elina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a beautiful and upsetting project

“We want to change our future, create one without refinement. One where Palestine and the rest of the world is free.” p46 from Map 2.0 by Adele Jarrar

“His heart, instead, was overrun by a sweet, unusual warmth as he witnessed her carrying a whole fatherland in her lap.” p84 from The Nonage by Fakry Al-Serdawi

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting project holding gems inside. made me want to pick up my pen and write. could not read the introduction without thinking of the current genocide within this land. the book was published years ago and peace remains dystopian

[Iván W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este libro es el resultado de una serie de talleres sobre ciencia ficción que se hicieron en Palestina y compila algunos de los cuentos escritos en el marco de esos talleres. Lo ví en una feria de libros y arte en México y automáticamente supe que tenía que comprarlo. La edición es muy linda, con los colores de la bandera palestina en el dorso de las hojas. Además, es una edición bilingüe: de un lado se puede leer en inglés y del otro se puede leer en árabe.

Sobre los cuentos, son algo irregulares, algunos me encantaron, otros me resultaron indiferentes y otros directamente no me gustaron. Pero, más allá de la valoración que haga de cada cuento aislado, un libro como este abre dos puertas muy interesantes. Por un lado, nos acerca literatura de un país del que raramente nos llegan cosas para leer. Por el otro, al ser cuentos de ciencia ficción podemos ver cosas acerca de cómo mucha gente en Palestina piensa un presente y un pasado trágicos y cómo se imaginan (o querrían imaginar) un futuro incierto.

Ojalá hayan traducciones a más idiomas para que llegue a más gente en todo el mundo. Y ojalá podamos leer más de estas y estos autores en un futuro próximo.

[Tom Fazzino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Imaginative and disruptive - distancing from anglocentrism of sci-fi and confronting the real life challenges and struggles of Palestinians trying to rethink and reshape their futures. Each short story an evocative and personal glimpse at issues of human rights, colonisation, privacy, occupation, sustainability, governance, cyber-warfare and population control. Unique and thought provoking format of political expression "reworlding" Palestine and beyond.

[Shelley Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a small collection of eight stories, by different writers, by participants in a science fiction writing workshop held in Birzeit, Palestine.

The content is more interesting than the writing itself. In Adele Jarrar's 'Map 2.0, the narrator travels to both the past and the future, where a resistance group is planning how to stop the Nakba (the Catastrophe of 1948, when Palestine was occupied and some 700,000 Palestinians exiled or displaced). In Fakhry Al-Serdawi's 'The Nonage', the entire Palestinian population has been turned into infants, and a European couple adopt their father. And in Shada Mustafa's 'Ten', imagination (and accompanying thoughts of freedom) has been outlawed.

Edited by Callum Copley, these stories are examples of the close correlation between art and politics. The book (in a bilingual edition of both English and Arabic) is published by the creative people of Disarming Designs www.disarmingdesign.com

[Anson Mackay · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are some real gems in this collection of sci-fi short stories by Palestinian authors

[L E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tough read happy for the opportunity ! Such inventive stories

[Sinjin St. James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Free Palestine.