FBF Report

The Lebanese Daily Star has another article about the Frankfurt Book Fair, this one covering two discussions held by Arab intellectuals and writers present at the fair. A sample quote:

The atmosphere was markedly more poetic, even when the subject was politics, with a number of Arab authors who live in Europe recounting their experiences.
“I did not want to present my country as a country of oil, but as a country of poetry,” said Saudi novelist Ahmed Abodehman. “I am convinced that the soil of our country consists of poetry.”
The author of “The Belt” now writes in French – an impressive feat considering that he arrived in Paris on a scholarship while he was in his early 20s, not knowing a word of the language.
“My decision (to write in) the French language is a decision for freedom. I have eight siblings. Maybe I would never see them again, if I wrote in Arabic,” he said.

Take a look at the rest here.