Genesis and East Cairo—fiction from Shady Lewis Botros
In this excerpt from Shady Lewis Botros' latest novel, a child’s innocent counting game masks a disturbing reality.
The Imagination Interviews
Musings on a Major Exhibition: Women Defining Women at LACMA
Philip Grant took a look at a vast Los Angeles art exhibition that presents 75 independent Arab and Muslim women artists.
Queer Khaleejis and Western Biases—Individual Freedom at Stake
Christina Paschyn talks to queer activists in the Gulf who challenge the Western narrative on oppression and freedom for the LGBTQ community.
Artist at Work: Syrian Filmmaker Afraa Batous
Journalist and filmmaker Dima Hamdan talks to the young Syrian director of the documentary "All Roads Lead to More."
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.
The Ghost of Gezi Park—Turkey 10 Years On
An art critic comments on the 10th anniversary of the Gezi Park protests with an overview of a decade of corresponding Turkish art.
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.
The Rite of Flooding: When the Land Speaks
A walk through London’s Hackney Marshes calls forth stories of Gaza, the Nile, the Sindhu River and the Thames.
Youssef Rakha Practices Literary Deception in Emissaries
Zein El-Amine reviews the first collection of "original, irreverent" short stories written in English by Egyptian writer Youssef Rahka.
Newly Re-Opened, Beirut’s Sursock Museum is a Survivor
Arie Amaya-Akkermans recounts the history of Beirut's museum, with its multiple destructions and resurrections.
Niki, Prize-Winning Greek Novel, Captures the Country’s Civil War
Nektaria Anastasiadou reviews the newly-translated novel from Christos Chomenidis, which won the Greek National Book Award.
Wounded Tigris: A River Journey Through the Cradle of Civilisation
Nazli Tarzi reviews an adventure travel and climate change story of what humanity stands to lose with the death of a great river.
Afghan Cuisine’s Rice Dishes—Delectables of the Silk Road
Afghan American writer Sumaira Akbarzada shares several of her family's favorite rice dishes, recalling her trips to Afghanistan.
EARTH: Our Only Home
The editors explain why they chose the EARTH theme for the 32nd issue of The Markaz Review.
Fiction: An Excerpt from Fadi Zaghmout’s Hope On Earth
In a dystopian world, thanks to AI, people no longer die because they can be upgraded to better and more functional forms.