The diverse world of Kurdish literature

At the start of the summer we were lucky enough to receive funding to slowly start to build up our collection of Sorani-language books. Through the marvellous network that is the land of booklovers and literature enthusiasts we reached Kaveh, a Kurdish journalist currently living in Germany and Sara, the founders of Kitêbhên, an onlineContinue reading “The diverse world of Kurdish literature”

ECHO Book of the Week: the Night Mail

Hoda Barakat’s latest book won the 2019 International Prize for Arabic Fiction. It brings together the stories of six people who write after discovering the mainly incomplete or unsent letters of those before them. They are outsiders, migrants, refugees, foreigners. Through this book we gain brief but intense insights into their lives and how theyContinue reading “ECHO Book of the Week: the Night Mail”

ECHO Book of the Week: the Wasteland

T. S. Eliot’s The Wasteland is a masterpiece that speaks of the misery and trauma of war but in a way that was to change poetry forever. In the library we have it in Farsi for all our keen poetry afficionados out there. Who is the third who walks always beside you? When I count,Continue reading “ECHO Book of the Week: the Wasteland”

ECHO Book of the Week: Illuminations

Nizar Qabbani, Syrian poet of love, is a frequently requested poet in the library. This collection, “Illuminations” came a couple of months ago from al-Saqi bookshop in London. Is has already been loaned 3 times and it is not the only collection of Qabbani’s poetry that we have! My love asks, what is the differenceContinue reading “ECHO Book of the Week: Illuminations”

ECHO Book of the Week: Dr Zhivago

Doctor Zhivago is a complex saga first published in 1957 by Boris Pasternak. Set around the Russian Revolution and the First World War it follows the trajectories of many different characters from all walks of life as they endure the highs and lows of this tumultuous time. The version in the library is an earlyContinue reading “ECHO Book of the Week: Dr Zhivago”

ECHO Book of the Week:

Από Μακριά (from far away) is a beautiful new children’s book by Aggeliki Tharlasi. It narrates the tale of Roma girl Ali, her magical voice and how the children of a local town slowly discover the richness of building friendships with people who are different.The story tackles the thorny issue of how racist attitudes canContinue reading “ECHO Book of the Week:”

ECHO Book of the Week: The Whole-Brained Child

A Turkish translation of the Whole Brained Child is available at ECHO! Many of our readers across the language groups are interested in psychology and sociology. With a lot of young parents in the camps this book is of particular interest in understanding our brain and how essential the early years are for children’s development.Continue reading “ECHO Book of the Week: The Whole-Brained Child”

ECHO Book of the Week: Sister Outsider

Audrey Lorde was a seminal figure who wrote passionately from her unique revolutionary, black, feminist, lesbian perspective. Through her essays, literature and poetry we witness her life’s journey and her role in the development of the subaltern voice in 20th century literature. The true focus of revolutionary change is never merely the oppressive situations weContinue reading “ECHO Book of the Week: Sister Outsider”