Rana Asfour

is the Managing Editor at The Markaz Review, as well as a freelance writer, book critic, and translator. Her work has appeared in such publications as Madame Magazine, The Guardian UK, and The National/UAE. She chairs TMR’s English-language Book Club, which meets online the last Sunday of every month. She can be found on X & Instagram @bookfabulous.

“Ghosts of Farsis” — a cyberpunk story

“Ghosts of Farsis” — a cyberpunk story

 The story is part of Hussein Fawzy's cyberpunk story collection “Graduation Project” recently published by Waziz House.

6 DECEMBER 2024 • By Hussein Fawzy, Rana Asfour
Top 10 Books to Read this Fall

Top 10 Books to Read this Fall

Editors recommend their top ten titles to read this season, from novels set in Egypt, Zanzibar, Oman and...

13 SEPTEMBER 2024 • By Rana Asfour, Malu Halasa
Mohammad Hafez Ragab: Upsetting the Guards of Cairo

Mohammad Hafez Ragab: Upsetting the Guards of Cairo

Maha Al Aswad sheds light on Egyptian writer Mohammad Hafez Ragab, a literary figure of the 1960s whose...

6 SEPTEMBER 2024 • By Maha Al Aswad, Rana Asfour
“Fragments from a Gaza Nightmare”—fiction from Sama Hassan

“Fragments from a Gaza Nightmare”—fiction from Sama Hassan

A Gaza-based writer captures the intense and harrowing experiences of individuals enduring the brutal realities of genocide.

30 AUGUST 2024 • By Sama Hassan, Rana Asfour
“The Mulberry Tree”—an excerpt from Altercation in Jahannam

“The Mulberry Tree”—an excerpt from Altercation in Jahannam

In the Libyan village “Hell,” temperatures soar to unimaginable heights, and war breaks out over a parking space...

5 JULY 2024 • By Mohammed Alnaas, Rana Asfour
The Top 12 Books to Read This Summer

The Top 12 Books to Read This Summer

Travel through the center of the world this summer from the comfort of your couch when you pick...

5 JULY 2024 • By Rana Asfour
“Deferred Sorrow”—fiction from Haidar Al Ghazali

“Deferred Sorrow”—fiction from Haidar Al Ghazali

In Haidar Al Ghazali's short story, a Palestinian father during the war on Gaza makes an impossible choice.

5 JULY 2024 • By Haidar Al Ghazali, Rana Asfour
Bloodied Dispatches—Ahmed Isselmou on the Gaza Carnage

Bloodied Dispatches—Ahmed Isselmou on the Gaza Carnage

The assault on Gaza is the longest and deadliest Israeli offensive to date, and the worst in targeting...

3 MAY 2024 • By Ahmed Isselmou, Rana Asfour
Feurat Alani: Paris, Fallujah and Recovered Memory

Feurat Alani: Paris, Fallujah and Recovered Memory

Feurat Alani, a French novelist of Iraqi descent, succeeds in capturing the connections between two disparate cultural spheres.

1 APRIL 2024 • By Nada Ghosn, Rana Asfour
Four Books to Revolutionize Your Thinking

Four Books to Revolutionize Your Thinking

TMR's managing editor, Rana Asfour, offers four books to challenge the world as we know it.

3 MARCH 2024 • By Rana Asfour
“Twelve Angels”—fiction from Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi

“Twelve Angels”—fiction from Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi

In this short story by Egyptian writer Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi, translated from Arabic, a man contends with his...

3 DECEMBER 2023 • By Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi, Rana Asfour
Huda Fakhreddine’s A Brief Time Under a Different Sun

Huda Fakhreddine’s A Brief Time Under a Different Sun

Exclusive excerpt from Huda Fahreddine's "A Brief Time Under a Different Sun," translated from the Arabic by Rana...

3 DECEMBER 2023 • By Huda J. Fakhreddine, Rana Asfour
Scroll to Top