Wondering what you should read this summer? Look no further than our top picks of books by Middle Eastern and North African writers – a list of unforgettable reads that will keep you captivated whether you’ve got a packed summer of travel planned, or are looking forward to balmy evenings lounging with a book at home. From timeless love stories to unwind with, to compelling short stories that will keep you on the edge of your deck chair, your next perfect read will be on this list!
Celestial Bodies | Jokha Alharthi, translated by Marilyn Booth
Against the backdrop of the rapidly changing society of modern Oman, three sisters contend with love affairs, loss and marriage in this beautiful novel. Using the stories of multiple generations of families living in the village of Al-Awafi to paint a rich picture of Omani culture and heritage, Celestial Bodies addresses the juxtaposition of tradition and modernity in Oman’s recent history, deftly taking on the topics of slavery and class dynamics.
A triumph of a novel from Omani author and academic Jokha Alharthi, Celestial Bodies is not only the first book written in Arabic to win the International Man Booker Prize, it is also the first novel written by an Omani woman to be translated into English.
We Wrote in Symbols: Love and Lust by Arab Women Writers | Edited by Selma Dabbagh
A stunning collection of 75 pieces of writing by female authors with Middle Eastern heritage, We Wrote In Symbols reveals the hidden tradition of erotic writing in Arab literature. From poems written by an 8th century Abbasid princess, to modern tales of a forbidden rendezvous in a hotel in Saudi Arabia and a meeting between two women in a Dubai airport lounge, this powerful, taboo-busting anthology honours the long tradition of women’s writing across the Middle East and North Africa.
Something Strange, Like Hunger: Short Stories | By Malika Moustadraf, translated by Alice Guthrie
A ground-breaking collection of short stories by pioneering Moroccan feminist and activist Malika Moustadraf, Something Strange, Like Hunger shies away from nothing.
From the reminiscences of an intersex sex-worker and a suicidal single mother to the semi-autobiographical story of a kidney disease patient unable to afford treatment, this collection is a raw and fearless exploration of topics most would not dare to broach, deconstructing patriarchy, class, gender and trauma in Moustadraf’s unflinching style. Published in 2022, sixteen years after Moustadraf’s death at only 37, Something Strange, Like Hunger is the first time her work has been available in English, translated by the award-winning Alice Guthrie.
The Map Of Love | Ahdaf Soueif
“Hubb’ is love, ‘ishq’ is love that entwines two people together, ‘shafhaf’ is love that nests in the chambers of the heart, ‘hayam’ is love that wanders the earth, ‘teeh’ is love in which you lose yourself, ‘walah’ is love that carries sorrow within it, ‘sababah’ is love that exudes from the pores, ‘hawa’ is love that shares its name with ‘air’ and with ‘falling’, ‘gharam’ is love that is willing to pay the price.”
– Ahdaf Soueif, The Map of Love
We couldn’t resist including this gem by the masterful Egyptian novelist Ahdaf Soueif. A hundred years apart, the lives of two women are intertwined in this story of love, family and politics set in Egypt at either end of the 20th century. Soueif’s beautiful prose and her nuanced take on colonialism and Egyptian resistance made The Map Of Love a Booker Prize finalist. An enduring classic, and truly a book to sink into.
You Have Not Yet Been Defeated | Alaa Abd El-Fattah
Including passages smuggled out of the notorious Tora Prison in Cairo, You Have Not Yet Been Defeated is a collection of essays, interviews and social media posts by the fearless Egyptian-British activist and political prisoner Alaa Abd El-Fattah. Despite urgent appeals to the Egyptian and British governments to secure his release, Abd El-Fattah is currently in a life-threatening condition after nearly 90 days on hunger strike (at time of publication). A searing exploration of the last decade of Egyptian politics, and his reflections on freedom, technology and incarceration, Abd El-Fattah’s piercing insight in You Have Not Yet Been Defeated makes for essential, terrifying reading.
The Annotated Arabian Nights: Tales From 1001 Nights | Translated by Yasmine Seale
Escape into an exquisite world of adventure with Sinbad, Shahrazad and Aladdin in the newest translation of the timeless stories of 1001 Nights.
Be enthralled by tales of jinns, viziers, dervishes, fairies, sultans and enchanted horses, all in wondrously lyrical prose and accompanied by annotations and rich illustrations.
The Stone House | Yara Hawari
A harrowing story of survival, The Stone House by Yara Hawari tells a powerful tale of trauma and resilience under Israeli occupation. Twenty years on from the Nakba (the forced expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and the destruction of more than 500 Palestinian villages by Israel), a young Palestinian boy named Mahmoud takes us on a journey through the collective history of his family through his memories, many of them in their threatened family home – the stone house. This compelling novella is Palestinian writer and political analyst Yara Hawari’s literary debut.
The Old Woman And The River | By Ismail Fahd Ismail, translated by Sophia Vasalou
In 1980, as the looming war between Iraq and Iran is brewing, Um Qasem’s family is forced to evacuate their home on the banks of the Shatt Al-Arab river, close to the Iranian border, and flee into the north. Years pass, and worn down by homesickness and the death of her husband, she saddles up her donkey and sets out on the perilous trip back home to lay his bones to rest. A touching tale of the tenacity of women and the futility of war, this is a beautiful read.
What will you be reading this summer? Let us know what your top picks are and your take on the books on this list – we’d love to know what you thought of them!