Banipal Magazine celebrates the best 100 Arab novels

The new issue of Banipal magazine (No. 63 autumn / winter 2018) was published, and included a wide collection of the best 100 Arab novels.

Under the title "The 100 Best Arab Novels," Banipal published a literary referendum with 100 writers, critics, academics and translators. She said that the novels that came in the list of the best 100 novels written in Arabic, was chosen based on the number of nominations received by each novel by the writers, critics, academics and translators who participated in the referendum.

The magazine has asked a specific question of 100 literary personalities, "in your opinion, what novels deserve, or should be in the list of the best hundred Arabic novels written in Arabic." The magazine said that the referendum was about "novels" rather than "authors" so the magazine allowed the nomination of more than one title for the same author.

The issue included a special file on the writer and translator and Iraqi Academy Hayat Sharara, who committed suicide in 1997 "to protest the intervention of Baathist intelligence services in university life in Baghdad, and also protest against the economic embargo imposed on Iraq after the first Gulf War.

The file included a long testimony written by her sister Bilqis Sharara and an article by Iraqi researcher Fadhel Chalabi about her famous novel "If the Days Gone", which was published after her death from the Arab Institute for Studies and Publishing in 2000. The magazine presented a chapter of the novel translated by Jonathan Wright.

The magazine has been an Egyptian painter and poet, Ahmed Morsi, who has lived in the United States since the 1970s and published in color the paintings of the artist, including the cover of the magazine, with a certificate of his works written by the Spanish critic Alfonso Armada, and another about his poetic experience written by Iraqi poet Salah Awad.

Poems
The magazine published poems by Ahmed Morsi from his well-known "Photos from New York" album.

The new edition includes texts of three books from Egypt: "The Rough Jasmine" A short story by the writer Azza Rashad (translated by Jonathan Wright), a chapter of the novel "To Love You Cihan" by the late writer Makkawi Said (translated by Ahmed Salah Eddin) and three poems by the poet Gerges Shukri of His book "Apple does not understand anything" (translated by Paul Starkey).

In the book review section, Susana Tarboush wrote about the novel "Sophia" by Syrian-German writer Rafik Shami.

Becky Maddock wrote the novel "Joseph Tadros" by the Egyptian writer Adel Esmat. The British poet Ruth Badil wrote about the Syrian poet Nuri al-Jarrah's "Leesbos", published by Banipal House (translated by Camilo Gomez Rivas and Allison Blecker).

British writer Peter Kalou wrote about the ideology of "Baghdad Nawar" edited by Samuel Chamoun. While Bill Swanson wrote the novel "Passion of Passion" by the Syrian writer Nehad Syres (Max Weiss translation).

Hanna Somerville wrote about the novel "The Spider's House" by Egyptian author Mohamed Abdel Nabi (translated by Jonathan Wright). Italian academic Aldo Nicosia wrote about the novel "The Dictation in Arjunha" by late Tunisian writer Bashir Khareef.

Claire Roberts reviewed four novels, "Seven Cigars" by Egyptian writer Donia Kamal, "The Summer in Syria" by British writer Dorothy Al-Khafaji, "The Thobe" by Kuwaiti writer Talib Rifai, and " "To British researcher Martin Ross.