In The Country of Men – Hisham Matar, Libya
The news from Libya this month is increasingly grim. It turns out it is extremely difficult merely to protect civilians. …
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Cave of Forgotten Dreams – Werner Herzog
For a wonderful excursion away from the shattering sights and sounds of the here-and-now take a friend and an understanding …
Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes
I’ve had the pleasure of reading (actually, listening to) Bay Area author Tamim Ansary’s Destiny Disrupted: A History of the …
Contemporary Iraqi Fiction
A book of contemporary writers from Iraq should be a welcome corrective to the bias our current notions of Iraq …
The Veil – Ahdaf Soueif, Egypt/U.K.
Ahadaf Soueif, is a Cairo born, Egypt and U.K educated, writer, predominantly of fiction. She got major attention with her …
The Owl and the Sparrow — A Film from Vietnam
There may be no films we watch with more trepidation than those of little girls in dire circumstances. Little boys, …
Don’t Go Near the Water — Johnny Cash
Don’t know how I missed this back when the old man was with us and singing it. Amy Goodman played …
“I Think of You” — Stories from Ahdaf Soueif, Egypt and England
Giving birth in a Muslim hospital where a sign in English reads, ‘Under no circumstance you must be alone with …
The Long Way Back by Fuad al-Takarli: A Novel from Iraq
The ascension of Saddam Hussein to the peak of Iraqi power began in 1958 when a coup led by Brigadier …
Jane Eyre: Now and Then
Went to see the new production of Jane Eyre last night, in good part because Cary Fukunaga‘s earlier “Sin Nombre“ …
Buffalo Boy — A Film of Vietnamese Herders
The incredible, beautiful green of trees, grasses and rice against the blue rivers, blue skies and white clouds at the …
Every Man Dies Alone — Hans Fallada, Germany 1947
No less than Primo Levi, Herman Hesse and Thomas Mann have sung the praises of Hans Fallada, the novelist who …