Erbil (Iraq) (AFP)

Houda Kathem, 17, anxiously awaits comments on her first novel, which has been roasted for questions at a book club in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan where young authors breathe new life into local literary creation.

"I learned a lot in terms of writing and that encourages me to continue," the young medical student told AFP after hearing criticism from young readers, writers and teachers.

After having published a short story in children's literature, the young author's first novel, entitled "Barani Marg" ("A rain of the dead" in Kurdish), tells the story of a Kurd who became a soldier at the age of 15 to flee disputes. family and a romantic break-up.

A story shared by more than one inhabitant of the autonomous region of northern Iraq, ravaged by conflict for 40 years.

These social subjects, addressed in the works of fiction which flourish, are now regularly discussed in the eight reading clubs of Kurdistan which make a point of honor to present local authors.

In the region where stories have been passed down for centuries orally, novelist Goran Sabah led the way by setting up his book club in January at a café in Erbil.

- "Opening schools" -

For this Doctor of Literature from the University of Kansas in the United States, "it is the best way to exchange ideas and create a sense of belonging for young people", in a region where politics and good part of the economy are held by two family clans unwilling to make way for a new generation.

In fact, Mr. Sabah told AFP, all these circles "are schools of openness: they create generations who gain confidence and change society" in the face of growing poverty and unemployment and traditions conservative.

"There are some who get away from watching football and others who prefer writing or reading," says Sabah.

For his book club comrade, Kurdish teacher Bakhtyar Farouq, "young Kurds write to express their anger and their suffering, but also to escape."

Because, with a passport which does not give access to almost any country and which often causes rejection of visas or emigration, many Iraqis "read to travel", assures the professor to AFP.

"One can thus visit Paris, for example, by thought."

Kurdish literature, today mainly published in Sorani and Kurmanji, the two dialects of Iraqi Kurdistan, is little translated beyond the borders.

Some books are distributed in Arabic, Farsi or Turkish, mainly for Kurds from neighboring countries who do not always share the same dialect.

- "Superheroine" by Erbil -

But "there is a lack of political will: many countries dedicate a budget to the dissemination of their literature abroad, but we, not yet", deplores Mr. Sabah.

However, there is the small publishing house Nusyar Books, created two years ago in Copenhagen, which tries to promote Kurdish literature.

Each year, it rewards three books by young authors and is currently translating a collection of modern Kurdish poetry into Danish as well as two novels into Danish, English and Farsi.

"It is extremely difficult and expensive to translate and export Kurdish literature, but it is a dream that I realize", affirms to AFP its founder, Alan Pary, himself a poet and translator.

One of the two novels he intends to make known to the world is by Goran Sabah and constitutes a small revolution in Kurdistan.

It is indeed the first science fiction book ever written in Kurdish.

The book, "The Finishers of Life", tackles the ultra taboo question in Iraq of suicide, a phenomenon which is constantly increasing in the country.

The action is set in 2100, with a young Kurdish girl from Erbil ending a wave of suicide after religions, technology and science fail to do so.

The author does not want to reveal how the young superheroine goes about it, but her work has visibly seduced.

Published at the end of February in 500 copies, the novel is out of stock and will soon be reprinted.

© 2021 AFP