The Markaz Review is a literary arts publication and cultural institution that curates content and programs on the greater Middle East and our communities in diaspora. The Markaz signifies “the center” in Arabic, as well as Persian, Turkish, Hebrew and Urdu.
TMR 24 • BERLIN
Centerpiece
“What Are You Doing in Berlin?”—a short story by Ahmed Awny
Egyptian writer Ahmed Awny divigates between fiction and reality in this decentering short story.
Why Berlin?
Editor Jordan Elgrably introduces the BERLIN issue guest editor, Viola Shafik, and more than a dozen new contributors to TMR.
Translating Walter Benjamin on Berlin, a German-Arabic Journey
Ahmed Farouk, the Arabic translator of Günter Grass, W. G. Sebald and Rosa Luxemburg, among others, struggles with Walter Benjamin.
Paranoid in Berlin: a short story by Shada Mustafa
Shada Mustafa, author of the novel "Things I Left Behind," negotiates Berlin from a recent immigrant's vantage point.
“Another German”—a short story by Ahmed Awadalla
An Egyptian refugee in Berlin, longing for a home of his own, hopes love is around the corner.
TMR Weekly
Vocalist Samira Brahmia Bridges France and Algeria with Love
For her 11th TMR music column, Melissa Chemam interviews the Algerian-French diva Samira Brahmia.
Muslims in the Americas—a review of “Praying to the West”
Francisco Letelier, a non-Muslim, reviews Omar Mouallem's "Praying to the West" from the outside looking in.