The freedom to live life on its own terms is at stake in Omar Youssef Souleimane’s novel "The Last Syrian", about the Arab Spring in Syria. When Mohamed Bouazizi set himself... Read More

In Eva Menasse’s short story collection "Animals", families, parents, and lovers are understood in terms of excerpted zoological descriptions of animal behavior. “Butterfly,... Read More

In immersive and lyrical prose, Vénus Khoury-Ghata’s novel "The Fiancée Rode in on a Donkey" illuminates the life of a forgotten figure from French-Algerian history. When a... Read More

Jean-Baptiste Phou’s frank memoir "Coming Out of My Skin" functions as an impassioned manifesto against anti-Asian racism, which—in Phou’s experience—has been even more... Read More

A bank robbery gone wrong ends in death in "24 Hours with Gaspar", Sabda Armandio’s engaging, happenstance-led thriller. Gaspar is frivolous and aloof, convinced that he’s... Read More

Broken dreams and family bonds are at the center of Gert Loschütz’s novel "A Fine Couple". After World War II, Georg and Herta ended up in East Germany. Herta had been... Read More

Kim Hyun’s collection "Glory Hole" exists in a liminal space, defying neat categorization. It’s a mix of poetry and prose that blurs the lines between stories and essays.... Read More

“Nothing comes to the surface in solitude except that which is already hidden deep within us,” yet, when faced with the solitude of his own mortality, Hussein Barghouthi... Read More

In Clarence Boulay’s delicate, mesmeric novel "Tristan", a woman’s ardor on a volcanic island tests her emotional thresholds. From its seafaring opening aboard a lobster... Read More

Wanjikũ Wa Ngũgĩ’s dreamlike coming-of-age novel "Seasons in Hippoland" is about the power of storytelling. Mumbi grows up in Victoriana, a country populated by freedom... Read More

Tobie Nathan’s historical novel "A Land Like You" is a feast for the corporeal and spiritual senses. In twentieth-century Cairo, a newborn Jewish boy and an infant Muslim... Read More

As a child, Maryse Condé found the family kitchen to be a refuge from a frightening, confusing world. Surrounded by enticing scents and comforting arms, she discovered her love... Read More