The world of Saudi literature is reaching more English-language readers, with an increasing number of translations in recent years. You can now experience the intricate characters and thought-provoking plots of authors like Badriah Albeshr and Mohammed Hasan Alwan. Not to mention older works by Rajaa Alsanea and Abdelrahman Munif. Saudi writers are also winning literary prizes. The International Prize for Arabic Fiction (aka the IPAF or the Arabic Booker), the Prix de la Littérature Arabe, and others. Which in turn generates more press for Saudi authors, Saudi books, and new translations.
Maybe you’ve heard of Munif’s Cities of Salt, published and translated in the 1980s. Or Alsanea’s 2005 best-seller Girls of Riyadh, translated into English in 2008. Today we discuss other Saudi books though, newer novels you may not know. Here are seven Saudi novels, each translated from 2015 onward.
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Throwing Sparks
Abdo Khal’s controversial novel, banned in Saudi Arabia, won the Arabic Booker Prize in 2010 and came out in English in 2015. As the IPAF website notes, the book “explores the corrupting impact of power, making a statement by placing the marginalized and the powerless in the limelight.”
The main character Tariq is a henchman for a corrupt and ruthless businessman in Jeddah. At his employer’s behest, he doles out harsh punishments on his employer’s enemies, described in some dark and disturbing scenes. And after years of this work, Tariq begins to question his role. How can he find a way out?
You can buy Throwing Sparks here.
Days of Ignorance
The English translation of Laila Aljohani’s 2007 book also came out in 2015. In one sense, it is a love story between Leen and Malek, a Saudi woman and a black man born in Saudi Arabia without Saudi citizenship. Yet, Aljohani deftly directs the narrative to focus on racism, morality, and honor, when Leen’s brother assaults Malek for the color of his skin. Furthermore, this attack and its repercussions take on even more importance because they take place in Medina, the second holiest city in Islam.
The novel is thus a study of diverse emotions and inner struggles. As one reviewer explained, “Aljohani’s skill truly shines in the inner dialogue and in the many beautiful poetic observations of their emotional states.”
You can buy Days of Ignorance here.
The Dove’s Necklace
A young woman lies dead on a Meccan street, nude and nameless. Who is she? Who killed her and why? Described as intriguing, masterful, and dramatic, Raja Alem’s novel won the Arabic Booker Prize in 2011. The plot flows beautifully in and out of the city, and around the neighborhood of Abu Alroos. In this fashion, we see the story (and the city) from unique and unexpected angles. We witness the police investigations, of course. But also emails from the dead woman, the thoughts and perspectives of her neighbors, and narration from the neighborhood itself.
And so, as the IPAF website describes, Alem’s novel is more than fiction. It is “a spiritual journey across time and space, an attempt to break material barriers by creating virtual or spiritual spaces, and sometimes intellectual ones.”
You can buy The Dove’s Necklace at Amazon or here at Bookshop.org.
Hend and the Soldiers
Saudi author Badriah Albeshr wrote this novella in 2005, although it wasn’t translated into English until 2017. Don’t let the book’s length fool you, however. In only 128 pages, Albeshr relates the intricate and thought-provoking tale of Hend, a divorced woman forging her own path, amidst the stories of her family and the women who came before her. The book beautifully highlights the challenges of romance and human connection, as they clash with social norms and strict gender roles.
As reviewer Marcia Lynx Qualey describes, this novella “remains a vital take on contemporary Saudi Arabia, stories and romance, particularly as it doesn′t invest its energy in fiery young loves. Instead, the book places its hopes in the charm of an older romance: the possibility of falling in love with one′s eyes open, in defiance of all the stories one′s been told.”
You can buy Hend and the Soldiers at Amazon or here at Bookshop.org.
The Critical Case of a Man Called K
Written in the form of a diary, this 2017 novel by Aziz Mohammed brilliantly describes a life of alienation. The narrator “K” already feels out of place in his home and work life, even before receiving word that he has leukemia… K’s commentary deftly depicts his medical visits, awkward day-to-day interactions, struggles at work, and attempts to write like his favorite authors. One review says this novel is “in some ways a re-telling of Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, through the lens of the changes happening to a critically ill body.”
Note: A big thank you to the Bulaq Podcast, whose August 2022 episode about this novel inspired me to compose this list of Saudi books.
You can buy The Critical Case of the Man Called K at Amazon or here at Bookshop.org.
The Book Smuggler
This book by Saudi author Omaima Al-Khamis takes us back to the Crusades, focusing on the journeys of the bookseller and scribe Mazid al-Hanafi. His travels to Baghdad, Jerusalem, Cairo, and Islamic Spain bring al-Hanafi into the world of book smugglers, philosophical debates, and sectarian struggles. A detailed review on The Modern Novel website highlights two of the book’s main themes. First, the desire to “spread learning and knowledge throughout the Islamic world during a period when non-Islamic Europe was still in the Dark Ages.” And, second, “the idea of tolerance and understanding for different points of view.”
Al-Khamis’ book won the Mahfouz Medal for Literature and was long-listed for the Arabic Booker. Her narrative is simultaneously an epic travel journey, a glimpse into Arab life in the medieval era, and an ode to books and the pursuit of knowledge.
You can buy The Book Smuggler at Amazon or here at Bookshop.org.
Ibn Arabi’s Small Death
This excellent novel by Mohammed Hasan Alwan won the Arabic Booker in 2017, with an English translation appearing in 2022. It follows the story of the 12th-century Sufi master and philosopher Ibn Arabi. This fictionalized account, written from the perspective of Ibn Arabi himself, avoids his more controversial philosophies and reveals the human side of this famous persona.
As the IPAF website describes, the sweeping narrative chronicles Ibn Arabi’s adventures and mystic experience throughout the region — from “Andalusia to Azerbaijan, via Morocco, Egypt, the Hijaz, Syria, Iraq and Turkey.” A historical novel told with exquisite language and description.
You can buy Ibn Arabi’s Small Death at Amazon or here at Bookshop.org.
What Next?
Start reading! Look for these books by Saudi authors at your local library. Or purchase their work for yourself. Head to your neighborhood bookstore, click the links above, or visit online sites like Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, or Powell’s.
Then join the discussion – Which novel or author intrigued you the most? Have you read any of these Saudi books already? Let me know by dropping a comment below. And, if you liked this post, please pass it along to others, share it on social media, or subscribe to this blog to receive other posts.
Lastly, make sure to check out other books by Middle Eastern authors! There are so many excellent works and writers to choose from. Here at the blog Other Things, we’ve recently explored must-read books by Naguib Mahfouz, discussed topics in Middle Eastern history using two beautiful graphic memoirs, and examined several award-winning authors from Tunisia.
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