Essay Photos by Mai Al-Nakib / Courtesy of the author Civilizations, empires, dynasties, and monarchies end, leaving behind ruins of their fabled splendor. Traces of achievements become more or less decipherable, contingent upon the mercy of elements and vagaries of time. Global ascents have been awesome. The point, however, is that no matter how accomplished or established the power, no matter how seemingly eternal, its passing is guaranteed. In the shadow of World War II, Walter Benjamin described the angel of history with his face turned toward the past: “Where we perceive a chain of events, he sees one single catastrophe which keeps piling wreckage upon wreckage.” Unlike most of us, the angel of history takes the long view. He bears witness to the rising debris, which periodically may initiate a state of emergency, such as genocide or war. Whether this state of emergency brings about radical transformation or more of the same cannot be determined in advance. A cursory archaeology of our planetary ruins reveals the latter to be the case more frequently. Any citizen of a failing nation-state adopting the angel of history’s long view must ask herself a series of sobering questions. Given its recent past, the parameters of its present, and the constitution of its population and leadership, how likely is it that the kind of sweeping change a country needs in order to survive will occur? Have the sacrifices of the many over... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2021-07-07 12:48:10 UTC ]
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Sunny Singh reflects on how far the Jhalak Prize and the publishing industry have come since the award was founded, and how far there is to go. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-03-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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People keep saying that it would never get past the censorious new generation, rather forgetting its arduous struggle to be printed in the 1950sIf millennials are currently aged between the ages of 22 and 36, I am one, albeit somewhere in the upper echelons – and I am also a publisher. And so I... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2019-03-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Allison Al-Masri offers reading recommendations on Arabic literature in translation and talks about the role of prizes like the Sheikh Zayed Book Award in bringing Arabic writing to more readers. The post Six Questions for the Sheikh Zayed Book Award’s Allison Al-Masri appeared first on... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2019-02-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The former foreign correspondent’s memoirs recall a continent caught between a romantic past and an uncertain future Continue reading at The Economist
[ The Economist | 2019-02-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Illustration student Al Rodin has won this year’s Sebastian Walker Award for Illustration with his “bold and characterful artwork”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-02-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Five past presidents of the American Booksellers Association met at Winter Institute in Albuquerque, N.M., last week to talk about where the industry is now and where it's headed. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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“My name doesn’t matter,” proclaims the narrator of Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s debut novel, “We Cast a Shadow.” “All you need to know is that I’m a phantom, a figment ….” The first words of Ruffin’s book seem to be a tribute to the opening of Ralph Ellison’s “Invisible Man,” which begins, “I am in... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The British Academy's Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize has staged an interview with its 2018 laureate at the Jaipur Literature Festival. The post Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize 2019 Opens at India’s Jaipur Festival appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2019-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Glenn Close scored her seventh Oscar nomination for her lead performance in “The Wife.” The Sony Pictures Classics drama sees Close playing Joan Castleman, the accommodating spouse of an acclaimed Nobel Prize-winning author. With six prior nods, for “The World According to Garp” (1982), “The Big... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In his annual year-end letter to staff, Penguin Random House CEO Markus Dohle cited the success of 'Becoming', a long list of literary awards and best book citations, and the continued global growth of audiobook sales as 2018 highlights. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Este martes, la secretaria de Seguridad Nacional, Kirstjen Nielsen, contraatacó las afirmaciones de que los migrantes centroamericanos que viajan hacia Estados Unidos como parte de una caravana son mujeres dóciles y niños que huyen de la violencia. En una playa, cerca de la valla de alambre de... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hugo Setzer, c.e.o. of Mexico publisher Manual Moderno, and Bodour Al Qasimi, founder and c.e.o. of the UAE's Kalimat Group, have been confirmed as the future president and vice-president of the International Publishers Association. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-10-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new audiobook and a crowdfunding campaign to supply hospices are just some of the events happening around Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris’ The Lost Words, which celebrates its first birthday on 5th October. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-10-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In opening her bid for leadership in the International Publishers Association, the UAE's Bodour Al Qasimi says publishing 'shouldn't be an industry stuck in time in how it treats the majority of its workforce.' The post Bodour Al Qasimi Announces Candidacy for Vice President of the International... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-10-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The UK's relatively young Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize announces its shortlist, which honors nonfiction books that enhance 'global cultural understanding.' The post Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize Announces Its 2018 Shortlist in ‘Global Understanding’ appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-09-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In light of the Reflecting Realities report, Katrina Gutierrez explains how the industry can better support small presses working to increase representation in children's books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-07-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education's chief executive explains why it is launching the UK's first survey of ethnic representation in children’s literature. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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At Abu Dhabi Internaitonal Book Fair, two Swedish publishing specialists offer the contemporary and traditions of book technologies to Arabic readers—newly translated audiobooks and carefully crafted hardbacks. The post Sweden in the UAE: Kitab Sawti’s Arabic Audiobooks and Dar Al Muna’s Print... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-04-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Books of reflections and prayers by Maria Shriver and Roma Downey take top spots on PW’s Religion Nonfiction in the weeks leading up to Easter. Plus, Terri Blackstock came in at #2 in Fiction with the last book in the If I Run trilogy. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ingrid Gnerlich at Princeton University Press has signed a book from Professor Jim Al-Khalili, provisionally titled The World Physics Made. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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