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Middle East/North African Lit discussion
Let us get to know each other :)

Created by Niledaughter, Dec 10, 2010 1125 views
Niledaughter Thanks Gina, you can recommend books in here ( Book recomendations):
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Carolien Hi all,

I'm South African and have been a member of the African Reads group for a while which has introduced me to so many great books by authors on the continent. I've been wondering whether there is a group for the Middle East and a comment by Orgeluse which appeared in my update feed brought me here. I'd love to read more books from this part of the world and look forward to participating in some of your group reads next year.
Melanie Welcome, Carolien!
Orgeluse Carolien wrote: "Hi all,

I'm South African and have been a member of the African Reads group for a while which has introduced me to so many great books by authors on the continent. I've been wondering whether ther..."

Hi Carolien, great to see you here!! I am also happy to have found this group as there are such a lot of interesting recommendations and I like the "intersections" with our African Reads group!!
Carolien I've found that North African books read very differently from the sub-Saharan books and would like to explore that more. This seems like a great place to start.
Niledaughter Carolien wrote: "Hi all,

I'm South African and have been a member of the African Reads group for a while which has introduced me to so many great books by authors on the continent. I've been wondering whether ther..."

Welcome Carolien, I hope you will like it here!
I have been a member of the African Reads group for a long time, but I am not active there for a while now, it is not easy for me to find the books. When Marieke (former moderator in both groups) was active, she used to provide the link :). It is a great group!

Orgeluse, I am glad you like MENA group :)
E Hi All,

I am a graduate student in the states in Economics. One of my new friends in the program is from Morocco, so I thought it would be nice to read more literature from the region, as a means to being more culturally aware. Also, I am need of some escapism and a good story. I can somewhat read in French, but nor Arabic, so I would probably follow best for books with English/French translations. Also, I have taken a few classes on the history and politics of the MENA region (my teacher was Lebanese) but I am a complete novice on the literature/art in the region (and tbh, rather stale on the info I do know). I would love to familiarize myself with what those living in the area would call "classics" (or must reads by country or culture). Open to suggestions and new friends!

Cheers,
E
Melanie Welcome, Emily! It's hard to know what you'd like instantly, but hopefully this group will help give you ideas. I do have a blog post with some general ideas, which was in response to "Where to Start?" discussions M. Lynx Qualey initiated in her podcast and site (links in the start of my post)...
https://www.melaniemagidow.com/?s=lib...
Johanna I see I've not introduce myself. I follow the group since about a year. I'm from Switzerland and interesting in the Middle East. It is a region with a lot of questions for me, so with reading books I can learn something. Normaly I read germanliteratur (80%) or dutch. So when possible I'll read the books in German, otherwise in English. My English is not very good anymore. Thanks for managing this wunderfull MENA group.
Niledaughter E wrote: "Hi All,

I am a graduate student in the states in Economics. One of my new friends in the program is from Morocco, so I thought it would be nice to read more literature from the region, as a means ..."

Welcome E, I hope you will like it here, Here is our plan for this year
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

Our group reads in the first half is about empowering women, while the second half will be chosen from the best Arabic literature. Our read for July Granada can fit both categories.
You can find more about best Arabic literature in here:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...


Johanna wrote: "I see I've not introduce myself. I follow the group since about a year. I'm from Switzerland and interesting in the Middle East. It is a region with a lot of questions for me, so with reading books..."

Welcome Johanna, it is so nice to hear from you, I am not an expert but I think you can find German translations for several books we read. You can pick your own books for our challenge as well, it covers all the region :)
https://www.goodreads.com/challenges/...
Shereen Hello!

I am Shereen. I’m an American, and both of my parents are immigrants. My mother is German and my father is Iranian. You could say I am a Geranian. 😆

I love to read literature from all over the world and MENA has a special place in my heart. It’s how I reconnect with my roots.
Melanie Welcome Shereen!
Niledaughter Welcome Shereen, I hope you will like it here.
Jalilah Shereen wrote: "Hello!

I am Shereen. I’m an American, and both of my parents are immigrants. My mother is German and my father is Iranian. You could say I am a Geranian. 😆

I love to read literature from all over..."

Welcome!
Jane Hello everyone! My name is Jane, I am an American in New York City, but my soul is stuck in the Middle East. I love the music, food, history, and literature from the MENA region - traveled to Turkey and Israel, and will make my way eventually through Morocco, Jordan, Egypt, and many more in this life time. But most of all, many of life's questions have been answered by this part of the world...there's something to that...

Jane <3
Niledaughter Welcome Jane!
I love your enthusiasm!
I hope you like it with us:)
Jane Thank you! :)
Tamara Agha-Jaffar Welcome, Jane!

I saw on your profile you have an interest in Abrahamic religions. I share your interest. In fact, it's a passion of mine.

If you go to the bookshelves on my profile, you'll find around 80 books on monotheistic religions. Some of them are novels, but many are non fiction. And many of them focus on Islam.

Below is the link to my shelf. I hope you find it helpful and enjoy browsing through it.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
Jane Hi Tamara! Thanks for the connect and yes, I'm glad I'm finding others with shared passions! I focus mostly on non fiction, but am open to any great literature really. I'll definitely be checking out your bookshelves, I'll add you to my Friends List :).

Best,
Wayne Jordaan Hi, I am Wayne from the Southern end of the African continent, and I read voraciously. I am what may be called an omnivorous reader, ok maybe not too much of the romantic and horror stuff. Freya Starke in A Winter in Arabia stated that she travelled to 'know' and maybe contribute to the understanding between East and West. Well, I read to know and hopefully the insights that I gain from my vicarious travels will help to contribute to deeper understanding in my small circle of influence of a region of which I know very little.

Looking forward to some great reads. Thanks for the invite Carolien, much appreciated.
Niledaughter Wayne wrote: "Hi, I am Wayne from the Southern end of the African continent, and I read voraciously. I am what may be called an omnivorous reader, ok maybe not too much of the romantic and horror stuff. Freya St..."

Welcome onboard Wayne, I hope you will like it in here.
Sorry for the late reply!
Wayne Jordaan Niledaughter wrote: "Wayne wrote: "Hi, I am Wayne from the Southern end of the African continent, and I read voraciously. I am what may be called an omnivorous reader, ok maybe not too much of the romantic and horror s..."

Thank you Niledaughter, I am having a great time already, what with the interesting posts and a whole lot of reading material added to the TBR list from a lesser-read region for me
Roya Hello, everyone!
I’m Roya! I’m German-Iranian and I joined because I really would love to broaden my horizon regarding literature from the SWANA region.
Excited to read and learn from you all :)
Niledaughter Welcome on board Roya! hope you will like it here.
amanda Hello, everyone! I'm Amanda, and I'm from the US. I joined because I would like to learn more about lit from the MENA region, and would also like to interact a bit more with others who read these works! I have a few friends from the MENA region so I've been learning more for a few years now, but I became really interested in the literature after taking a middle east history course in college, and my teacher gave me a lot of recommendations. Excited to see what y'all have to share!
Melanie Welcome, Amanda! Feel free to let us know if you have any favorites, to give us a better sense of what you might enjoy. I hope you find this a good place to talk MENA lit :)
Niledaughter Welcome Amanda :)
Curt Rude If you do not come to gripes with the past you are bound to repeat it. There is certainly much that can be gleaned from the experiences folks of the Middle East have to offer. Need I mention Khaled Hosseini (A Thousand Splendid Suns) or Fatima Hosseini (Never a Child)?
Niledaughter Wow :) Welcome Purell, I hope you will like it here and find what you want!
Chandra Whalen Good afternoon,

I'm fairly new to the group and will doing my first book read this month! I lived in Oman for a number of years and will be heading to Jeddah. I'm a fan of Gulf literature, art, and media; I'm pleased to see many books making their way into literary circles and groups such as this! Thanks for letting me join!
Memo Calderon Hello. i'm. memo and I AM interested in Mena. lebanese ascendance. interested in Christians in Mena, lebanon, the syrian conflict and jihadists
Niledaughter Welcome Chandra and Memo! :)
I hope you will like it in here, we cover different interests in here!
Jalilah Memo wrote: "Hello. i'm. memo and I AM interested in Mena. lebanese ascendance. interested in Christians in Mena, lebanon, the syrian conflict and jihadists"

Welcome! There are lots of good books on all you’re interested in!
Ramsey Hanhan I am a Palestinian American author of Fugitive Dreams, a literary memoir about growing up in Palestine and emigrating to the US. I was a scientist in my previous career. I like to read about all topics, especially the Middle East.
Niledaughter Interesting, Welcome on board Ramsey!
Zaina Arekat Marhaba from Bahrain!
Niledaughter Ahlan Zaina!
Maz Hello everyone! I am Maz from Morocco; a 22-year-old fiction enthusiast. I might be on the younger side but I would love to immerse myself to some of my region's literature so I'm open to whatever the recommendations. Thanks in advance.
Niledaughter Welcome Maz. I hope you will like here and reach what you seek :)
Ramsey Hanhan Niledaughter wrote: "Interesting, Welcome on board Ramsey!"

Thank you. Looking forward to doing some reading.
Zaina Arekat Maz wrote: "Hello everyone! I am Maz from Morocco; a 22-year-old fiction enthusiast. I might be on the younger side but I would love to immerse myself to some of my region's literature so I'm open to whatever ..."


Hey Maz. I recently read a book by Mohammed Mrabet, a Moroccan author and story teller, and I hope to read more by him. :)
Maz Thanks for the recommendation! I will check out his work for sure.
Maz I've just started Love With a Few Hairs. Beautifully narrated!
Zaina Arekat Wonderful! Let me know what you think of it, i haven’t read that one. Enjoy.
Maz Zaina Arekat wrote: "Wonderful! Let me know what you think of it, i haven’t read that one. Enjoy."

I am half way through (couldn't help it). Once I am done I will let you know.
Jalilah Maz wrote: "I've just started Love With a Few Hairs. Beautifully narrated!"

It was good! I read it many years ago, but now feel like reading it again!
Maz To those that read the book, what exactly does the author mean by "He slept with Mr. Davis"? I don't know if it's just a literal/word-to-word translation or if the main character is indeed having a sexual relationship with Mr. Davis.
Jalilah Maz wrote: "To those that read the book, what exactly does the author mean by "He slept with Mr. Davis"? I don't know if it's just a literal/word-to-word translation or if the main character is indeed having a..."

It’s been too many years since I read it, so I don’t remember. I plan to reread this year, but don’t known when exactly
frisco - فریسکو Hi! I live in the Czech Republic but am from Sardinia; this island currently belongs to the Italian State, but I would describe myself as Sardinian and Mediterranean since I feel my Sardinian culture between the two shores of the Mediterranean.

I lived in Iran and Jordan and I am also interested in the large "MENA" region for study reasons.

I am here because I'd love to learn more about literature and have a good chat with other group members!
Inji hi I live in Mexico, I am from Cairo, have lived all over. I like memoirs, dystopias and magic realism. I read in different languages, mostly e-books and audiobooks (though I am finding it harder to focus these days).
I started and am currently running an in-person bookclub and I co-moderated another one before.
I love the recommendations in this bookclub and I long for zoom bookdiscussions!
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