Novel
Granada
غرناطة
Radwa Ashour · 1994
Synopsis
Granada, 1492. Besieged by the Castilians, the city accepts a treaty that promises the vanquished their language, their faith and their customs. Abu Jaafar, who makes and sells manuscript books, employs two orphans, Saad and Naim, and brings up his grandchildren, Hassan, who is cautious, and Salima, who dreams of studying medicine. Soon his sales collapse, Arabic books are burned in public, and baptism becomes compulsory for all who wish to stay.
Context
The novel appeared in 1994 from Dar al-Hilal and became the first volume of a trilogy, which was awarded a prize at the Cairo book fair. In it the author follows several generations of a Granadan family, from the capitulation of 1492 to the persecutions that followed, according to The Modern Novel; the first volume opens with a book burning, according to Teach Mideast. William Granara translated the first volume into English in 2003; Kay Heikkinen gave the whole trilogy in 2024.
Who it is for
A historical novel in Arabic, translated into English but not into French, about the beginnings of Christian Spain.
Prizes and reception
Opening volume of a trilogy honoured in Cairo, and the book by its author that can be read in English.
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