Since Mahmood is experiencing a writer”s block, I thought I would stir up the conversation a bit with a subject that is guranteed to stir some thoughts.
I have a confession to make. I am a book addict, I love books. Here are some of my favorite books that I would like to share with the rest of you.
My favorite arabic novel is “Cities of Salt” by Abed Al Rahman Muneef.
I love that novel so much that I read it both in arabic and translated english and enjoyed both because the English translation is of a high quality. The story is a fictional account of modern Saudi history. It is a sharp, witty and humorous. It criticizes that society strongly yet makes you fall in love with it. When I finished reading the novel I felt a great longing to go live in the desert. It’s a great shame that the author was stripped of his Saudi citizenship and forced to live in exile.
The Old Social Classes and the Revolutionary Movements of Iraq
By Hanna Batatu
I consider this book the bible and ultimate source of information about modern history of Iraq. It is academic and slightly boring to read but it well worth the effort if you want to understand the history of iraq. It has been translated to arabic but I only read it in English.
Guests of the Sheik – Anthropology of an Iraqi Village by Elizabeth fernea
Short, very readable and touching story of an American woman who lives in an Iraqi village in the south of Iraq in the 50’s because of her anthropologist husband.
Women of Sand and Myrrh
By Hannan al Shaykh
Stories about women in the middle east. Very approachable. For some reason I found this book very touching. I could relate to all the characters in the stories. I also have read both the english and arabic.
I would be interested to hear what other people like to read and if they have books that they could recommend.
Now if this doesn’t help Mahmood then I will be forced to blog about the subject of last resort ….. favorite movies.
— ihath
Comments
May I recommend
I would very heartily recommend “Theodore Rex”, by Edmund Morris. It’s a lengthy account of the years Theodore Roosevelt spent in the White House. I find it a fascinating book, because not only is it an impressive study of the man as President, but it also goes into impressive detail about the emergence of modern American foreign policy. Here’s where you can find the book’s reviews on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0812966007/002-7371922-0212852
Hope you get a chance to check it out.
May I recommend
Try the downloadable (in Arabic) The Trouble with Islam by the Canadian authoress Irshad Manji, a very smart lady.
Site: http://www.muslim-refusenik.com/
SK.
May I recommend
Oh no! Not favourite lists! I’ll write I’ll write it has been unblocked!!
thanks for coming to the rescue ihath 🙂
May I recommend
I just finished “The Origins of Virtue: Human Instincts and the Evolution of Cooperation” by Matt Ridley, which discusses the biological and cultural causes for virtue. Ridley argues that trust is a selfish behavior. It’s uneven but it has a lot of interesting facts and arguments.
Shelby Foote’s three volumes of “The Civil War: A Narrative” is the best account of the US Civil War and a wonderfully rich story which focuses on the individuals. It’s written in novel form rather than as a history, though it sticks strictly to the facts.
“Oranges” by John McPhee is a wonderful little book all about oranges and orange juice. I know it sounds crazy but this book is fascinating. I just never knew oranges were so interesting. I sent copies of this to friends for Christmas.
“Inside The Mirage: America’s Fragile Partnership With Saudi Arabia” by Thomas Lippman was a very readable history of the American relationship with the damned Saudis told through the stories of individual Americans who worked there. It’s quite good.
“The Hidden Life of Dogs” by Elizabeth Marshall told me a lot of interesting things about dogs and indirectly about humans. Socially, we organize ourselves much the same way.
Steve