2011 Arab American Book Award is Taking Nominations

The Arab American National Museum (AANM) is proud to announce that submissions are now being accepted for the 2011 Arab American Book Award.

Established in 2006, the Arab American Book Award honors significant new works by and about Arab Americans.

Caption Contest: “Reflections on the Arab Malady”

To the cover of “Being Arab” by Samir Kassir in the original French I add the first suggested captions: the shib-shib mufakkir and “Oh fuck mum just poured a bucket of poo over her head again having remembered she’s Arab while the earth splits into two.” Other witty captions are welcomed. The best one will [...]

A Country Called Amreeka – Book Review

Alia Malek may very well be the first to narrate a comprehensive contemporary American history from the perspective of Arabs in America. If others have grown up in a situation anything like mine, then their experience reading textbooks in grade school is not unlike that of many other non-white peoples in the United States, who read what passes as American history often wondering what role people like them played.

Randa Jarrar discusses her novel, A Map of Home

Randa Jarrar’s A Map of Home is a novel that changes the landscape of Arab-American fiction. Nidali, the narrator and a young half-Palestinian, half-Egyptian/Greek girl, shares the story of her life from birth to college, leaving no questionable power dynamic unburned along the way. From outsmarting overbearing and abusive men, writing cavalier letters to Saddam [...]

Hugo’s Book Club

It was well-known that every writer yearns to be featured on Oprah’s Book Club. It’s the literary equivalent of shitting gold. Although I am no lit reader, I sense most of the books are feel-good and uncritical, even when delving into serious issues. Mere mention by the human corporation known as Oprah gets an author [...]

Mada al-Carmel Issues the Second Issue of Jadal

In February, I used Kabobfest to advertise the issuing of Jadal’s first issue. I will repeat my shameless exploitation of my posting privileges now that the second issue is out. Mada al-Carmel, the Arab Center for Applied Social Research in Haifa, a unique research center that is attempting to create the first intellectual institution run [...]

Looking Back: P.J. O’Rourke on his Palestine Vacation 20 years ago

Conservative humorist PJ O’Rourke traveled to the Palestinian territories in 1988 after the intifada, or uprising began. It started in Gaza the year before, and he wanted to witness it. He reported what he saw in his book, ‘Holidays in Hell’ (2000), a chronicle of the worst conflict zones in worse. He called Palestine the [...]

Poets for Palestine: A Book Review

A common frame the mainstream public has grown accustomed to seeing Palestine portrayed in primetime news is one of violence. The way in which Palestinians have been and continue to be represented in the media by such an unforgiving hegemonic narrative contributes to the world’s lack of understanding and sympathy for their cause. Art offers [...]

Book refuting Jewish taboo on Israel’s bestseller list

The latest from the great Jonathan Cook. Please visit his web site. http://www.jkcook.net No one is more surprised than Shlomo Sand that his latest academic work has spent 19 weeks on Israel’s bestseller list – and that success has come to the history professor despite his book challenging Israel’s biggest taboo. Dr Sand argues that [...]

Hi, I’m a Hmar.

“Are any of you people George Obama?” That bio-assassin who helped swift boat John Kerry, and is now seeking his next Olympic pay off with a Google-dependent attack book on Obama, got third-worlded in Kenya. By the way, “getting third worlded” is KABOBfestese for anytime a first world citizen (or upper class person) gets some [...]