“Season of Crimson Blossoms” by Abubakar Adam Ibrahim represents “a talented new voice in contemporary Nigerian literature.” Continue reading Season of Crimson Blossoms by Abubakar Adam Ibrahim @ NYJB
“Israel is a story of a homeless people that kept a dream alive for millennia, of a people’s redemption from the edge of the abyss, of a nation forging a future when none seemed possible,” Daniel Gordis writes in the introduction to his new book, Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn. He continues, “Never had the Jews left Zion willingly, and never had they ceased believing that they would one day return.” Gordis captures the intense struggle of the Jews to secure their homeland as they suffered expulsion, pogroms, and the Holocaust. It is a story of the … Continue reading Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn, by Daniel Gordis @ NYJB
“Hunting with Eagles” by Palani Mohan offers a rare glimpse into a vanishing way of life captured by a photojournalist nomad. Continue reading Hunting with Eagles: In the Realm of the Mongolian Kazakhs by Palani Mohan @ NYJB
This week for my penultimate entry in the On Being Human series I examine “Nekropolis” by Maureen McHugh, a novel about an artificial being called a harni and Hariba, a woman who has been “jessed” into subservience. Continue reading On Being Human: Nekropolis, by Maureen McHugh
Food is one of the essential requirements for existence. One cannot go about one’s daily business without caloric intake. However, beyond the needs food fulfils, one takes pleasure in eating. That is why people read restaurant reviews or watch No Reservations. Food also represents a mirror of a specific place, culture, and personality. Why a book entitled Fasting for Ramadan has recipes in the back also requires explanation. Fasting for Ramadan: Notes from a Spiritual Practice by Kazim Ali is a stunning literary jewel. An extended meditation on the Muslim practice of fasting during the month of Ramadan has appeal … Continue reading Fasting for Ramadan: Notes from a Spiritual Practice, by Kazim Ali
The Driftless Area Review 