Hannah Fox

Some interesting books on this longlist! I’ve been enjoying reading Kurdish writer Fatma Aydemir’s ‘Djinns’ lately (translated from German by @jpolizei.bsky.social). Looks like there are some other titles I need to add to my ever-growing “to read” pile!

Are you also interested in racism on instagram? I reported the P-word used against a young person on there & was advised it didn’t go against their standards. I submitted it for review, but never heard more as they only review selected cases.

To celebrate the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah from prison, the ebook edition of YOU HAVE NOT YET BEEN DEFEATED, tr. an anonymous collective, is available to download for free for the next week via all ebook platforms, including Kindle and Apple Books, until 30 September.

Today’s the first day of Autumn, so I thought I’d share this beautiful poem by Kurdish poet Qubad Jalil-Zada:

کزەی پایز بەڕێوەیە

دارستان لەبری خۆی داپۆشێت،

خۆی ڕوت دەکاتەوە.

The cool breeze of autumn is coming

but instead of covering herself,

the forest is undressing.

Looking forward to the next book club hosted by The Markaz Review. I loved reading Sand-Catcher and found it surprisingly funny as well as moving.

I’m so pleased to have had the chance to be involved in helping to expand @henarpress.bsky.social’s database of Kurdish Literature in English & glad that others are as excited about it as we are!

Henar Press is absolutely delighted to announce that we will be hosting a virtual reading for Sleeping in the Courtyard: Contemporary Kurdish Writers in Diaspora (University of Arkansas Press).

Please RSVP to receive the Zoom link: forms.gle/ArUEqXotVm8k...

And in hotels where food is provided they only get £9.95 per week…

AI translation service launched for fiction writers and publishers prompts dismay among translators UK-based GlobeScribe is charging $100 per book, per language for use of its services, but translators say that nuanced work can only be produced by humans

This article in The Guardian on the launch of GlobeScribe is worth reading.

Ian Giles, chair of the SoA's Translators Association argues Globescribe “may claim to unlock global access for fiction, but their approach sidelines the very people who make literature resonate across cultures"

Sounds good. Have you seen the exhibition on football zines on at Leeds Central Library currently? May be of interest!

Image shows book cover with title “Sleeping in the Courtyard” and sub-heading “Contemporary Kurdish Writers in Diaspora”.

Looking forward to the release of this new collection of Kurdish women’s writing, published by @uarkpress.bsky.social - Thanks Holly Mason Badra for bringing together writing from this broad range of voices from Kurdistan & the diaspora.

Jan Dost on writing in Arabic and Kurdish: "Like being caught between two magnets" | Qantara.de "Safe Corridor" is Jan Dost's first novel translated into English. The prolific Syrian writer explores the hardening impact of war on children and discusses the key differences between writing in Kurd...

Jan Dost: “We wrote novels and poetry collections in our mother tongue without ever studying it at school or university… It’s what I call a shadow literature."

Interesting article on the politics & personal tensions of writing in Kurdish & Arabic.
bit.ly/43zbB0x

A copy of the book Rojava In Focus: Critical Dialogues edited by Cihad Hammy and Thomas Jeffrey Miley sits on a background of green grass. The book cover features an illustration of a tree and a bird against a desert background.

🔥 GIVEAWAY 🔥 Feeling lucky? We're giving away 5 copies of 𝘙𝘰𝘫𝘢𝘷𝘢 𝘪𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴: 𝘊𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘴! To enter, follow AK Press and share this post. Shipping to US & Canada, but we'll send an e-book if you're somewhere else. We'll announce the winners 2/18 (release day!) www.akpress.org/rojava-in-fo...

Damien Jurado’s ‘Ohio’ is one of my all-time favourite sad songs.

I enjoy translated fiction too. A recent Korean novel I loved is ‘The Specters of Algeria’ by Hwang Yeo Jung. I recommend it if you haven’t already come across it! If you have any recommendations I’d love to know, as always looking to grow my “to be read” pile of books!

This is a really helpful and informative article. Thanks for sharing!

From this list, I’m especially looking forward to reading ‘On the Greenwich Line’ by Shady Lewis (published by Peirene Press next month). #booksky

A paperback copy of ‘My Friends’ by Hisham Matar on a table.

Reflecting on the books I read last year, one of my favourites was 'My Friends' by Hisham Matar. I found myself pausing on page after page to take in the gentle poetry of Matar's descriptions. The book is a beautiful exploration of the fragility of friendship in a context of exile.

'I spent 30 years in prison imagining becoming a free poet' Kurdish poet İlhan Sami Çomak, 51, was freed last week after serving 30 years in prison.

‘Someone in prison fears being forgotten, fears that their voice won’t be heard. People would tell me during visitations, “Your books are being read.” “They’re being translated into different languages”.. Knowing this gave me immense strength.’ - Kurdish poet, İlhan Sami Çomak

bit.ly/4f9lNPs