Unbelievable. Great news. Ahmad Faris Ash-Shidyaq's As-Saq `Ala-s-Saq is now available in English: "But Humphrey Davies' translation, published in four dual-language volumes, is a triumph. He skillfully renders punning, rhyming prose without breaking the spell. In his “Note on the Text,” Davies details some of the editorial impositions in earlier printings of the Arabic text, such as the rearranging of chapters and dropping of typographical marks, which he has wisely chosen to ignore by returning to the 1855 edition overseen by al-Shidyāq.
Leg Over Leg is published by the recently established series from NYU Press called The Library of Arabic Literature. In March, the first volume of Davies's translation was named to the shortlist for the 2014 Best Translated Book Award, administered by Three Percent, the online literature magazine of Open Letter Books, which is the book translation press of the University of Rochester. (The winner will be named on April 28th.) Though its competition is stiff — translations of very important novels by Elena Ferrante, Karl Ove Knausgaard, László Krasznahorkai, and Nobel laureate Elfriede Jelinek — Leg Over Leg stands out for both its stylistic brazenness and the excellence of the translation. With this bilingual edition, The Library of Arabic Literature helps fill a large cultural gap and alters our view of Arabic literature and the formal trajectory of the novel outside the West." But the reviewer misses the point of this most important of Arabic books when he describes it as a "novel". It is so not a novel and the character in the book are in fact to be read as real and often auto-biographical. One of my very favorite book possessions of all time was a first edition of this book from 1855 (the famous Paris edition). Alas I sold it for $3000 when I once needed extra cash. (thanks Talal)
PS The book has several editions in Arabic. There was the Paris edition which was complete, of course. Then there was the Cairo edition (lousy) from 1925. Then there was Dar Al-Hayat of Beirut edition from 1966. The reason why this book was not widely available in Arabic is because the Maronite church fought this guy (having killed his brother, As`ad Shidyaq for converting to protestantism). But there is now a new Beirut edition which is complete.
Leg Over Leg is published by the recently established series from NYU Press called The Library of Arabic Literature. In March, the first volume of Davies's translation was named to the shortlist for the 2014 Best Translated Book Award, administered by Three Percent, the online literature magazine of Open Letter Books, which is the book translation press of the University of Rochester. (The winner will be named on April 28th.) Though its competition is stiff — translations of very important novels by Elena Ferrante, Karl Ove Knausgaard, László Krasznahorkai, and Nobel laureate Elfriede Jelinek — Leg Over Leg stands out for both its stylistic brazenness and the excellence of the translation. With this bilingual edition, The Library of Arabic Literature helps fill a large cultural gap and alters our view of Arabic literature and the formal trajectory of the novel outside the West." But the reviewer misses the point of this most important of Arabic books when he describes it as a "novel". It is so not a novel and the character in the book are in fact to be read as real and often auto-biographical. One of my very favorite book possessions of all time was a first edition of this book from 1855 (the famous Paris edition). Alas I sold it for $3000 when I once needed extra cash. (thanks Talal)
PS The book has several editions in Arabic. There was the Paris edition which was complete, of course. Then there was the Cairo edition (lousy) from 1925. Then there was Dar Al-Hayat of Beirut edition from 1966. The reason why this book was not widely available in Arabic is because the Maronite church fought this guy (having killed his brother, As`ad Shidyaq for converting to protestantism). But there is now a new Beirut edition which is complete.
