#Marcia Lynx Qualey Translator

[cherylmmbookblog]

#Blogtour Black Foam by Haji Jabir

It’s a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour Black Foam by Haji Jabir – translated by Sawad Hussain and Marica Lynx Qualey. About the Author Haji Jabir is an Eritrean novelist who was born in the city of Massawa on the Red Sea Coast in 1976. He currently lives in Doha, Qatar, where he works as an Al Jazeera journalist. Jabir’s creative aim is to shed light on Eritrea’s past and present and to…

[smokefalls]

Every person has a story, and every life makes a tale.

Sonia Nimr, Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands (translated by Marcia Lynx Qualey)

[whilereadingandwalking]

Black Foam by Haji Jabir, translated by Sawad Hussain and Marcia Lynx Qualey, is a novel about an Eritrean man who has spent a lifetime making up stories to survive, and who just wants to be able to settle into a monotonous life of easy survival—to take a path that is paved instead of muddy and difficult to walk. 

 He's had many different names. He's been Adal, Dawoud, David, and Dawit. He's told many people what they've wanted to hear in order to get onto the next bus, or into the next refugee camp, that could mean surviving. Now, he's on his way to Israel as part of a community of Ethiopian Jews seeking refuge in Jerusalem. He knows his life has been a lie, but he no longer knows what else he can do. His stories follow him, stalk him. 

He resents how he's been forced as a refugee to relive his traumas, or to craft stories, to justify his survival—that he's been forced to either fabricate new selves, or give away his own deepest stories, to prove that he deserves a safe place to settle. Jabir writes this brilliantly—as we're ushered back through the stories of Dawit's life, we too aren't sure what's real and what Dawit has embellished, and increasingly, neither does Dawit. 

The experience of being a person born into war and then a refugee has stripped him, name by name, of knowing who he is. Of being able to own who he is—because it's the officials, the people deciding where he goes, who own his story. Who decide who he's allowed to be, and under what conditions. From the person who tells him "all the stories have been taken" by refugees before him to the researcher who digs into his story for her project, his life story, real or fabricated, is always something to be extracted by someone else. 

Black Foam was an excellent read. I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. It's out from Amazon Crossing on February 7. 

Content warnings for anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, racism, violence.

[arablit]

A Conversation about 'I'm Here With You,' a Bilingual Fiction Podcast

“أنا معاك / I’m Here With You” is, as its creators write, “an immersive audio drama exploring the personal stories of four people who call a mental health helpline looking for support.” The four stories — composed by Angham Mardi and translated to English by Lauren Pepperell — are available on Spotify, Soundcloud and Youtube. ArabLit editor Marcia Lynx Qualey talked to Angham Mardi and Lauren…

[jenmedsbookreviews]

Black Foam: A Novel by Haji Jabir translated by Sawad Hussain and Marcia Lynx Qualey

Today I am sharing my thoughts on Black Foam by Haji Jabir and wishing the author a happy publication day. #HajiJabir @sawadhussain @AmazonPub #marcialynxqualey #Books #BookTwitter #booktwt

Today I am sharing my thoughts on Black Foam, the brand new novel from Haji Jabir. My thanks to Katya Wack at FMcM for the tour invite and to publisher Amazon Crossing for the advance copy for review. Here’s what the book is all about: Source: Advance Reader CopyRelease Date: 07 February 2023Publisher: Amazon Crossing (more…) “”

[hilalchouman]

My first (slightly translated, heavily re-written & re-edited) English story is now out on Arabic Literature (in English): World of Dogs.

(with generous editing help/advice by Yasmine Zohdi, Ziad Dallal, Marcia Lynx Qualey, & Bekriah Mawasi)

Used painting by Oussama Baalbaki (wishing that I'll have one of his paintings as a novel cover soon)

[gumroad]

Introducing: The first batch of our Creators Fund recipients!

We’re super excited to talk about the first batch of Creators Fund grant recipients. They’re gonna do some great things for the world, and we’re excited to help them out a little bit.

We had 358 creators apply for this first batch, and picked eight to give a total of $9,550. You can apply to the Creators Fund here and follow us on Twitter for future updates. 

Without further ado, they are...

Christy-Lyn:

I’m a girl from the very tip of Africa (Cape Town, South Africa), creating content that educates thousands of adults from all around the world as they learn to play the harp as adults. So many people have dreamed their whole lives of playing the harp (see more about why below), but without a harp teacher nearby, they would remain isolated, in the dark, and lacking the resources they need to pursue their dream of sharing music that makes a difference in the world. Enter the internet and my YouTube channel! They are able to access the content they need and to receive the support, encouragement and learning they need to play the harp. 

Tim Cigelske:

My name is Tim Cigelske and I'm a writer. With Gumroad chipping in, I'm able to hire a copy editor for my book, The Creative Journey. I'm really excited about taking my next steps in the writing process! 

Christina Weese:

My name is Christina Weese and I am doing a year-long art documentary on Instagram. With Gumroad chipping in, I'm going to the local Women’s Entrepreneurs annual conference. The topic this year is social media. I'm really excited about having funding to take two more people to the conference; I’m looking for local Indigenous/First Nations women artists who could benefit from more exposure. We have some amazing artists around here whose work deserves to be more widely known.

Leo Schwartz:

My name is Leo Schwartz and I'm a journalist. With Gumroad chipping in, I'll be able to travel to Mexico City and report on the revolutionary presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Tsvetelina Valkanova:

My name is Tsvetelina Valkanova, I’m going to do small stylized library of Substance Designer textures. With the awesome help and contribution of Gumroad, all of it will be totally free to download and use for anyone! Stay tuned! :)

Justin Martin:

My name is Justin Martin and I make pose reference that helps artists grasp the human form. With Gumroad chipping-in, we can develop teaching materials for art educators, with the intent to provide them to teachers at cost. We believe in "radical sharing" and all our poses are currently free to use.

Marcia Lynx Qualey:

I’m the editor-in-chief behind ArabLit (www.arablit.org) and ArabLit Quarterly. With Gumroad chipping in, we're able to include even more award-winning authors and translators in our second issue. The design for the forthcoming issue is currently being finalized by Hassân Almohtasib and we're excited to have it there for #GumroadDay.

Brenden Harvey:

My team and I create the Goodnewspaper — a print newspaper that celebrates the people, ideas, and movements shaping the world for the better. We have subscribers in all 50 states as well as more than a dozen countries and reach more than 11,000 people with each issue. Inside of each issue, we have a beautifully designed centerfold poster with a quote from someone who does good in the world. We commission guest artists for each issue, but because we're still a really small publication, we aren't always able to pay top dollar for each commission. We'd like to ensure that we're highlighting the beautiful work of people from marginalized communities — and most of all, paying them well.

[smokefalls]

[Memories] became guests I could conjure at a time of my choosing, and no longer lived with me at every moment as before.

Sonia Nimr, Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands (translated by Marcia Lynx Qualey)

[smokefalls]

Title: Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands Author: Sonia Nimr Translator: Marcia Lynx Qualey Publication Year of Translation: 2021 Publisher: Interlink Books Genre: fiction

This was a fun read and follows a young Palestinian woman on her adventures primarily around the SWANA region. There was something almost fantastical about the way the story unfolded, perhaps because it was following a similar storytelling pattern as many folktales. It also seemed like Nimr wanted the reader to take something more out of this novel than all the adventures her protagonist goes on.

It was nice following such a witty and resilient Palestinian protagonist, Qamar, who really did what she could to make the most of her situation. I was also reminded of the dual nature of humans, who are capable of doing kind but also terrible things, as the reader discovers from Qamar’s journey. I did feel that the pacing of the fourth and final part of the novel was a bit rough compared to the previous parts, which did make the novel’s ending a little unsatisfying.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this novel, but overall, I was pleasantly surprised.

Content Warning: slavery, kidnapping, grief, death, violence

[arablit]

Author Haji Jaber & Translator Sawad Hussain Talk 'Black Foam'

On publication day for Haji Jaber’s Black Foam, a discussion with the author and translator Sawad Hussain about the origins of the book and the process of moving it into English. Marcia Lynx Qualey: Back in 2019, after Black Foam was longlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, you told me that the topic of the Falasha Jews had long been on your mind. When did you first start…

[arablit]

New Fiction by Basma El-Nsour: 'The Scorpion'

New Fiction by Basma El-Nsour: ‘The Scorpion’

By Basma El-Nsour Translated by I. Rida Mahmood and Marcia Lynx Qualey He squirmed a bit, feeling heavy all over, and opened his eyes. They were full of wrath, and it was with great difficulty that he raised his palm and brushed off the layers of dust that had gathered on his eyelids, struggling to move his stiff body. It wasn’t easy. When he stretched out an arm in search of his pack of…