Describing the Past

Reviews / Votes

'To call the novella haunting would be insufficient. The prose has a rare, fugitive quality: a narration that seems to envy the air, envy the breath of the other, and which knows in contrast its own confinement. . .] This novella should be commended both for its role in the translation of Zaqtan's oeuvre into English and as the first title in a new series for Arabic literature at Seagull Books, edited by the scholar and translator Hosam Aboul-Ela. In Wilder's English, Zaqtan's images are vital and distinctively restless; the prose has a bold simplicity that never settles into familiarity.' - Full Stop

'A taut, perfect object, beautifully crafted (and translated by Wilder). Little is clear and there are few answers, but the ultimate impression is one of controlled gorgeousness. . . Seeing Zaqtan's novella emerging from this vibrant publishing house, and in such distinctive and elegant form, is an optimistic act of decolonisation from a book trade centered on the UK and US. If Seagull's vigorous list of Arab authors is indicative, there should be plenty more to come.'

-Electronic Intifada

'While history serves as a backdrop to this dream narrative, Describing the Past is primarily "the story of a childhood whose domain is between the living and the dead, a coming of age story that ends as soon as it begins in desire'. Samuel Wilder, winner of Lucius Lyon Prize for poetry translation and a doctoral candidate in Arabic studies at Cambridge University, has captured the lyricism in Zaqtan's writing with finesse.'

-Arab Weekly