6 Books: Where to Start with Algerian Literature
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My favorite Algerian book critic, Dr. Nadia Ghanem, has put together an overview of who’s who—and what’s what—when it comes to Algerian literature in English.
In total, she found around 100 books. The first French translation of an Algerian literary work was published in 1956. After that, the first Arabic translation—of Taher Wattar’s The Earthquake—came in 2001. As of yet, no full-length Tamazight translation has appeared. In general, there is little Tamazight work in translation. “The work of the Kabyle poet Ahcene Mariche is an exception,” Ghanem says, “thanks to friends who regularly translate his collections into English.”
Ghanem’s 99 books represent novels, memoirs, and poetry collections. Among these, a third have appeared since 2010.
The Star of Algiers is set in Algeria in 1990–91, just on cusp of the Algerian civil war.
This is one of my favorites, brilliant absurdist humor.
In total, she found around 100 books. The first French translation of an Algerian literary work was published in 1956. After that, the first Arabic translation—of Taher Wattar’s The Earthquake—came in 2001. As of yet, no full-length Tamazight translation has appeared. In general, there is little Tamazight work in translation. “The work of the Kabyle poet Ahcene Mariche is an exception,” Ghanem says, “thanks to friends who regularly translate his collections into English.”
Ghanem’s 99 books represent novels, memoirs, and poetry collections. Among these, a third have appeared since 2010.
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