I was absolutely shocked when I discovered in an early translation of Traces of a Tattoo that the translator has decided to spice up the plot a bit by changing the outcome of a crucial scene. “With these changes,” he wrote in an e-mail, “you can call it a a great novel. You may want to consider adding my name as co-author rather than pushing it down almost on the verge of the cropping...
Shortly thereafter Aroub went into the bathroom and slammed the door shut. Her panic turning into an elaborate exercise of self-condemnation, she leaned back against the door and started pounding her thighs with her fists and biting at her lower lip with her eyes fixed on her pelvis. “Oh, my God!” she repeated frantically. “What’s happening to me?” Aroub experienced countless natural vaginal...
Scene: Amman, Jordan: Wissam’s aunt houseOne week later Haytham had to lower his head in order to look inside the taxi that had just pulled over in the middle of the road, right in front of his house. He then ran, opened a metal gate, crossed a large terraced garden and shouted, “Mama! Wissam’s arrived.” He went back to the taxi and waited for Wissam to finish paying the driver.“Haytham!” Wissam...
There Remains a Farewell As poetica by Adel Bishtawi The rickety wooden boat rocked dizzily on a sudden wave that crept shyly towards the beach, and almost touched their feet before the gently surging sea pulled it back. Nader was lost somewhere in the innermost depths of his soul when, as if in sympathy with his great admiration of the sea, his chest heaved, accompanied by a deep, tormented sigh...
A short story by adel bishtawi A shadowy veil descended slowly over the last warm rays of the sun as it dipped behind the trees to the south west. They sat on the cold marble stairs of the new college building, watching silently the irreversible conclusion of another day.The traffic had thinned to a fine trickle following rush hour, and the owner of the newspaper stall was hurriedly loading his...
A travel document to hell A short story by Adel Bishtawi The glass door to the left of the transit lounge was flung open and a young immigration officer holding a collection of green, blue, and black passports marched towards them in long, military strides. There were more than 60 transit passengers waiting behind the metal barrier but Ali was alone in his inability to describe why his heart had...
THE ATHEIST A short story in two parts BY Adel Bishtawi adapted from the novel Times of Death and Roses. (1) Rana, a beautiful Christian girl from Beirut, goes to her Muslim boyfriend’s flat for a coffee. As they were chatting she blinked. When she opened her eyes again she found herself naked in the darkness and virgin no more, a very serious female mishap in Arabia. Here is what happened...
“Times of Death and Roses does not allow for classification. This, in my opinion, is the most important characteristic of great literature.” 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗗𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗛 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗘𝗦 𝗔 𝗡𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗟 𝗕𝗬 𝗔𝗗𝗘𝗟 𝗕𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗧𝗔𝗪𝗜 {Editor’s note: Since the publication of the Novel Times of Death and Roses and the publication of this article Elie Hobeika was blown up in Beirut in January 2002} Reviewed by...
The patient reader will come out of the novel both damned and damning 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗗𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗛 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗘𝗦 𝗔 𝗡𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗟 𝗕𝗬 𝗔𝗗𝗘𝗟 𝗕𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗧𝗔𝗪𝗜 Reviewed by Iraqi Writer and Critic Ismael Zayer Times of Death and Roses by Palestinian novelist A. S. Bishtawi appears an extremely neutral title for a novel. It is a title that refers to things that have already been accomplished by time. But the neutrality was imperative...
Angel or a Demon? 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗗𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗛 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗘𝗦 𝗔 𝗡𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗟 𝗕𝗬 𝗔𝗗𝗘𝗟 𝗕𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗧𝗔𝗪𝗜 A review By distinguished Moroccan literary critic Mohammed Alloutt When over a year and half ago we presented novelist Adel Bishtawi as a distinguished writer our judgment stemmed from a solid conviction, especially following the publication of his fourth literary accomplishment, “Traces of a Tattoo” (1988). The...