Books from Iraq

This book explores the life and legacy of Bilal ibn Rabah, one of the most trusted companions of the Prophet Muhammad. It delves into his journey from slavery to becoming a prominent figure in early Islamic history. Discover the challenges he faced and the principles that guided him.

From a distance, things become clearer. This novel explores how characters understood Syria and Damascus more profoundly while in Berlin than they ever did while living there. Follow a young documentary filmmaker with a deep secret, his assistant who knows too much, and a psychiatrist whose search for truth forces him to re-examine everything. Their journey between Damascus and Berlin reveals a new perspective on Syria, going beyond the headlines to explore the human stories behind the news.

• multiple povs

In 1977, a mysterious explosion seals off a remote village, trapping its inhabitants in their own personal struggles. Oppressed rebels fight for freedom against tyrannical rulers, but the narrative constantly loops back, exploring a decade of hardship from 1967. Eight different characters recount a single event, weaving a complex story that questions who truly writes history. This novel explores themes of loss, false victory, and the meaning of existence in a world turned upside down.

• multiple povs

Sinan Antoon's poetry collection, 'One Night in All Cities,' navigates themes of memory, displacement, and the search for belonging across various landscapes. The verses offer a reflective journey through personal and collective histories, often touching upon the aftermath of conflict. Readers will find a contemplative exploration of identity and the human condition.

This is the story of a young boy named Hemn who lives in a village in Iraqi Kurdistan. When his grandfather falls ill, Hemn must embark on a dangerous journey to find a legendary pomegranate tree, believed to hold the cure. Facing the harsh realities of war and displacement, Hemn's quest becomes a test of his courage and resilience.

This novel offers a raw look at the daily struggles of a generation impacted by Arab political ideologies, told with unmatched irony and dark humor. Follow a storyteller with no sacred cows as he navigates Paris, dreaming of screenwriting while recounting his impoverished, cinema-loving childhood. It's a candid, cinematic, and unflinching self-portrait.

• fish out of water

In a city marked by political unrest and social change, three men from different backgrounds compete for the heart of the same woman. This Kurdish epic blends elements of fantasy with the harsh realities of war and history. It explores the deep connections between personal desire and the collective fate of a nation.

• love triangle
• multiple povs

"Among them these writers encompass, if not a Baghdad entire, then at least a Baghdad of diverse experiences and perspectives, and absolutely a Baghdad focused on the Arabic world and not the Western." --NPR Books "This anthology's status as perhaps the first collection of Iraqi crime fiction ever published makes it a landmark." --Publishers WeeklyAkashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each books comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the respective city. Now, one of the world's most war-town cities is portrayed through a noir lens in this chilling story collection. Brand-new stories by: Sinan Antoon, Ali Bader, Mohammed Alwan Jabr, Nassif Falak, Dheya al-Khalidi, Hussain al-Mozany, Layla Qasrany, Hayet Raies, Muhsin al-Ramli, Ahmed Saadawi, Hadia Said, Salima Salih, Salar Abdoh, and Roy Scranton. From the introduction by Samuel Shimon: While all Iraqis will readily agree that their life has always been noir, the majority of the stories in Baghdad Noir are set in the years following the American invasion of 2003, though one story is set in 1950 and three are set in the 1970s and 1980s. Yet it is this recent history of Iraq--over the last few decades--that serves to inform its present . . . Cementing the destruction of Iraqi life was Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. But that was hardly the end of Iraq's noir story. In April 2003, the US invasion, though it precipitated the end of Saddam's dictatorial rule, killed off any possibility of a secular, modern Iraq once and for all. Taken as a whole, the stories in Baghdad Noir testify to the enduring resilience of the Iraqi spirit amid an ongoing, real-life milieu of despair that the literary form of noir can at best only approximate. Yet the contributions here manage to hold their own as individual stories, where the rich traditions of intersecting cultures transcend the immediate political reality--even while being simultaneously informed by it. Much like the diverse tapestry of cultures that join together on the banks of the Tigris to form the City of Peace, Baghdad Noir reveals that there's nothing monolithic or ordinary about the voices of its writers.