Kareem’s Story, Excerpt from The Home I Worked to Make
A Syrian medical student from Damascus, forced into exile, shares his story with political scientist Wendy Pearlman — anonymously.
Cities
World Picks from the Editors: July 15 — August 2
Film and photography festivals, concerts, art, standup comedy, lectures...TMR World Picks run the gamut and are selected by our editors.
From An Improvised Attempt to Understand Social Transformations in Amman: “urbane” behavior in a city that is not a city
An exclusive excerpt from the new bilingual Arabic-English book "Waking Up to My Distorted City" by Hisham Bustani and Linda Al Khoury on the "urban" distortion of Amman.
Ode to Khartoum—a City Riven by Civil War
Dallia Abdel-Moniem has always loved her native city, but when she returned from abroad 10 years ago, it was with renewed hope for Sudan.
Special World Picks Sept 15-26 on TMR’s Third Anniversary
TMR publishes World Picks special edition on its third anniversary, including events from Sept. 15-26, 2023.
Ghassan Zeineddine Reflects On, Transcends the Identity Zeitgeist
Youssef Rakha is more interested in what it means to be a contemporary Arab-Muslim independently of the West than an American Arab.
Why Isn’t Ghaith Abdul-Ahad a Household Name?
Iason Athanasiadis reviews the Iraqi correspondent's new memoir on Middle East wars and asks questions.
Neither Explosions Nor Inflation Have Sunk Beirut’s Bookshops
Books continue to be a mainstay in Beirut, although bookshops are resorting to survival strategies.
In Shahrazad’s Hammam—fiction by Ahmed Awadalla
Ahmed Awadalla’s new story reveals sexual pleasure and doubt in a bathhouse in Beirut.
Freedom and Dislocation in Jamal Mahjoub’s Novel, The Fugitives
David Rife reviews the latest fiction from the Sudanese British author of more than a dozen literary and noir novels.
Deniz Goran’s New Novel Contrasts Art and the Gezi Park Protests
A novel about "toxic authoritarianism" and how it has shaped the lives of countless young persons in Turkey, sometimes through exile.
In Luxor, Egypt Projects Renewed Tourism Economy
Art historian William Carruthers explores the modern city of Luxor and the ancient site of Thebes along the Nile.
“The Icarist”—a short story by Omar El Akkad
Novelist Omar El Akkad recounts a beguiling coming-of-age story set in Doha, where he grew up before the family emigrated to Canada.
For Those Who Dwell in Tents, Home is Temporal—Or Is It?
Home is increasingly an elusive quality in an era of war, climate disaster, economic collapse and family misfortune.
The Odyssey That Forged a Stronger Athenian
An Athens native returns to Greece after a 20-year sojourn across the Mediterranean and Middle East, covering turmoil and displacement.