Description
The Halva-Maker (in Arabic, Al-Halwani, 2022) is a three-part novel, contributes through the medium of fiction to this different interpretation of the historical record, in that its third segment, entitled 'The Kurd,' is set during the final years of the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt and the attempts by Amaury (Almaric), Crusader King of Jerusalem, to take advantage of the weaknesses of the Egyptian regime. A central figure-the 'Kurd' of the section's title-is Yusuf ibn Ayyub, known as Salah ad-din (Saladin), who is sent by Nur ad-din Zengi, the governor of Aleppo, Syria, to oust the Crusaders. In 1171, Saladin brings the caliphate of Al-`Adid and the Fatimids to a close, restores Egypt to Sunni Islam, and assumes the sultanate himself, giving his name to the dynasty that follows (Ayyubids). However, before those events are recounted, The Halva-Maker devotes the first two sections of its trilogy structure to the foundation and development of the Fatimid dynasty.
About the Author
Dr Reem Bassiouney, an award-winning author and a professor of Sociolinguistics, was born in Alexandria, Egypt (1973). She has authored seven academic books and eleven novels. Her works have been best-sellers in the Arab World. Seven of her novels have been translated into other languages. She obtained her MPhil and DPHIL in linguistics from Oxford University. She is a professor of Linguistics at the American University in Cairo. Before that, she was an associate professor at Georgetown University in the US. Dr Bassiouney is the winner of the Sheikh Zaid Award (2024) for her novel, "The Halva Maker, The Trilogy of The Fatimids." She also won the National Prize for Excellence in Literature (2022) from the Egyptian Ministry of Culture. Bassiouney was awarded the prestigious Naguib Mahfouz Award (2020) from Egypt's Supreme Council for Culture for "Sons of the People," making her the first woman to win this prize. "Sons of the People" has also been nominated for the Dublin Literary Award by Bibliotheca Alexandria. Dr. Bassiouney was granted the King Fahd Literature Award (2010) for "The Pistachio Seller." She also won the 2009 Sawiris Foundation Literary Prize for "Professor Hanaa." In June 2011 Roger Allen retired from his position as the Sascha Jane Patterson Harvie Professor of Social Thought and Comparative Ethics in the School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania, where he also served as Professor of Arabic and Comparative Literature in the Department of Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations. He served as President of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA) for the year 2009-2010. He is Honorary President of the Banipal Trust and Sub-editor of the Encyclopedia of Islam 3rd edition for modern Arabic literature. He is a 2020 winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Shaikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding (Qatar). Among his numerous published studies on Arabic literature are: The Arabic Novel: an historical and critical introduction(2nd edition 1995, 2nd Arabic edition 1998), and The Arabic Literary Heritage in 1998 (and in abbreviated paperback form in 2000, as Introduction to Arabic Literature; Arabic translation, Cairo, 2003). He has translated a number of fictional works by modern Arab writers, including the Egyptian Nobel Laureate, Naguib Mahfouz: a collection of short stories, God's World (1973), and the novels, Autumn Quail, Mirrors, Karnak Cafe, Khan al-Khalili, and One Hour Left. He has also translated novels and short stories by a number of other Arab authors, including Jabra Ibrahim Jabra, Yusuf Idris, `Abd al-rahman Munif, Mayy Telmissany, Halim Barakat, BenSalim Himmich, Ahmad al-Tawfiq, and Hanan al-Shaykh. Since retirement, he has published a number of translations: the first complete edition of the original episodes of Muhammad al-Muwaylihi's Hadith `Isa ibn Hisham (What `Isa ibn Hisham Told Us, 2 vols., [Library of Arabic Literature series], New York: New York University Press, 2015); a novel (The Elusive Fox) and short-story collection (Monarch of the Square) by the Moroccan author, Muhammad Zifzaf (with Mbarek Sryfi); `Abd al-karim Ghallab's novel, Dafan-na al-madi (We Have Buried the Past, London: Haus Publishing, 2018); Naguib Mahfouz's newly discovered collection of narratives (untitled in the original, The Quarter, London: Saqi Books, 2019); and Ameen Rihani's travelogue, The Heart of Lebanon (Syracuse University Press, 2021),. Currently in press are two other historical novels by Reem Bassiouney, Sons of the People (Syracuse University Press), and Al-Qata'i` (Georgetown University Press).
Awards
Reem Bassiouney is crafting historical novels on medieval Egypt, blending poetry, architecture, and mythology to highlight the Egyptian character. Her narratives explore the era's social and intellectual evolution, capturing its depth with a fitting tone..
Book Information
ISBN 9781788711029
Author Reem Bassiouney
Format Paperback
Page Count 764
Imprint Dar Arab
Publisher Dar Arab
