Several months ago I undertook a project to read a novel by a woman from every nation. I listed 197 nations plus Palestine. The idea was not mine but came from a friend, now deceased, who talked about it occasionally and how much she enjoyed hearing the voices of women from other parts of the world. After a while I was intrigued enough to draw up a spreadsheet and even posted it on my blog, but it came out almost unreadable. Instead of trying that again, I’ll talk occasionally about my recent reading here.
Over the years I’ve read a number of novels by women from other countries, mostly from South Asia, and have a strong library of their work. Even so, I wanted to begin with a blank spreadsheet and choose stories and novels that are mostly current among the readers of each country. That means writers who live and work in their native land. I’m less interested in ex-pats living in the United States because their audience in this country cannot be discounted as an influence on the creation of the story. Nevertheless, I’ve read several books by displaced writers working in English and found them satisfying and enlightening.
Once I made the decision to focus on women writing and living in their country, when at all possible, the kind of literature I encountered deepened in terms of presenting a culture that required more thought on my part to enter and appreciate but the experience has been worth the effort. Certain western tropes didn’t appear, or at least not in the same way, and overall the fiction was much more enjoyable and interesting. Of course, anyone, myself included, must acknowledge that writing in English must influence the writer, and so, whenever possible, I looked for books originally written in the writer’s native tongue, assuming that wasn’t English or, in some cases, French or another European language. These requirements with exceptions have evolved so I’m not bogged down in a search for the “perfect representative” book. So, what have I read?
I’m working my way through the Middle East and North Africa, and I’ve posted reviews of several of the titles on Goodreads.
Chaos of the Senses by Ahlem Mosteghanemi (Algeria)
Chronicle of a Last Summer by Yasmine El Rashidi (Egypt)
To Keep the Sun Alive by Rabbeah Ghaffari (Iran)
All That I Want to Forget by Bothayna Al-Essa (Kuwait)
Wild Thorns by Sahar Khalifeh (Palestine)
Girls of Riyadh by Rajaa Alsanea (Saudi Arabia)
Two books that are probably better known in this country (USA) are not included. Both The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak (Turkey) and The Last Days of Café Leila by Donia Bijan (Iran) are interesting novels by women born in their respective countries but now living in the United States. Each novel tackles the circumstances for women but the stories are as much about life in the States as life in the old country. Immigrant women return to their family’s country of origin, linking two cultures and exploring unanswered questions. As interesting and rewarding as these novels are, they have the feel of being written by someone who is now an outsider with extensive knowledge of the country in question, with a shifting focus on the US and a now foreign land. For these and other reasons, I have chosen to focus on books written by authors residing for most of their lives in their native land.
Next up is So Vast the Prison by Assia Djebar.
As I mentioned in a FB post, I’m always open to suggestions so if you have a book you think would suit this list, do let me know. This project is a long one and I’m not in any hurry to finish. I like the world tour and the women I’m keeping company with.
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