It’s not the most high-profile of literary awards, but it must surely be the most esoteric. The Ondaatje Prize is awarded each year to the “book of the highest literary merit – fiction, non-fiction, poetry – evoking the spirit of a place”. This can mean almost anything can be nominated – last year’s winner was Edmund De Waal’s The Hare With The Amber Eyes (the Costa-winning book which investigated De Waal’s family history through his collection of Japanese netsuke). But Hisham Matar’s In The Country Of Men has also won in the past – a novel detailing the ordeal of a nine year...
A spring of Arab fiction
posted by Ben East
Copy: The National, Gulf Life, Vision, The Observer This spring I’ve been busy with the International Prize For Arabic Fiction – colloquially known as the Arabic Booker - for a number of publications. First I spoke with one of the nominees, Ezzedine Choukri Fishere for Gulf...
Keija Parssinen’s inside track on Saudi life
posted by Ben East
Copy: The National 13/03/12 >> CNN published an interesting story today on Saudi women. Entitled Pampered or Oppressed, it highlights the case of Samar Badawi, who served seven months in jail simply for disobeying her father. Earlier this month, she was given the 2012 International...
ROMESH GUNESEKERA ON ISLAND LIFE
posted by Ben East
Copy: The National 27/02/12, Metro 19/02/12 >> Having been to Mauritius recently, I was fascinated to see how the Booker-nominated Sri Lankan author Romesh Gunesekera would approach a novel set on the island. His lasting impression was similar to my own – it’s a fascinating...
David Nicholls looks back at One Day
posted by Ben East
Copy: The National 26/02/12 >> For a while last year it seemed like everyone was reading David Nicholls’ One Day, the wonderful tale of two star-crossed university lovers who we happen across every year, on the same day, for 20 years. I must admit I came to it late – one of...
Ruth Padel on why we’re all migrants
posted by Ben East
Copy: The National 20/02/12 >> My very favourite book of 2012 so far is Ruth Padel’s The Mara Crossing. Even the cover is gorgeous. It’s a really lovely series of reflections on migration, be that animal, human or avian, in which Padel writes a short essay on a topic which...
REVIEW: THE REVELATIONS BY ALEX PRESTON
posted by Ben East
Copy: Metro 16/02/12 >> Once again, I can’t post a link to Metro’s book reviews because for some reason they don’t publish them online. But here’s my review of Alex Preston’s second novel which, despite some reservations, I heartily recommend. The...
POET ADONIS ON SYRIA
posted by Ben East
Copy: The National 09/02/12 >> Every time I see another report on the terrible events in Syria, I’m reminded of Syrian poet Adonis. He lives in self-imposed exile after being imprisoned in 1956 for his involvement in an opposition party, but, writing from his Paris and Beirut...
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