Literature about the Middle East

Read On: Five Books to Watch Out for in 2013

From hard-hitting political commentary to deeply resonating fiction, there is something for everyone in 2013. Middle Eastern and South Asian writers and historians are tackling everything from politics to romance this year, and we’re taking note. Here are our top five books to watch out for in 2013:

The Triumph of Israel’s Radical Right: A Book Review

We live in dangerous times. A troika of storms threatens to sink modern civilization: the failing economy, the war on terror and climate change all hang over us like a thick black fog. Politics have become more extreme; the specter of the radical right clouds the illumination of reason. It is into this political maelstrom that Ami Pedahzur sets his excellent new book, The Triumph of Israel’s Radical Right (Oxford University Press, 2012).

Pedahzur’s book fits perfectly into a new wave of scholarship about Israel, Jews and the Middle East. It is well-timed in its attempt to explain and account for the critical and precipitous place that Israel occupies in international relations.

Jews and Words: A Book About The Power of Language

What has connected Jews through the centuries? Amos Oz and his daughter, Fania Oz-Salzberger, consider this question in their lovely new book, Jews and Words (Yale University Press, 2012).

Oz is a celebrated Israeli intellectual, writer and novelist. Born in Jerusalem in 1939, he is a longtime advocate for a two-state solution to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Oz was educated at Hebrew University and is the author of many books, such as Fima (1991), Israel, Palestine and Peace: Essays (1994), A Tale of Love and Darkness (2003), and How to Cure a Fanatic (2006). He is the recipient of numerous international literary awards, such as the Legion of Honour (1997), the Goethe Prize (2005), and the Primo Levi Prize (2008). Oz is a professor of literature at Ben-Gurion University.

Pomegranates and Roses: A Persian Cookbook Review

I was a bit nervous when I was asked to write a review of Ariana Bundy’s cookbook, Pomegranates and Roses. After all, I figured, what could a person whose somehow managed to survive for nearly 35 years without really learning how to cook have to say about another person’s cookbook? A lot actually -- it turns out that Pomegranates and Roses is not just a cookbook, it’s a glimpse into the intimate memoirs of a renowned chef who was trained in the finest French culinary schools. This was a book that would take me on a delicious journey where I would unlock my own “food memories.”

Ariana writes that it “was not until I began writing this book that I felt as though I was finally home.” Her book is a wonderful tapestry, weaving her family’s recipes from Iran with colorful tales of her childhood and passion for cooking.