Arab Science Fiction is largely unknown internationally, for this reason,
Arabilious
would like to make you discover nine short stories written by authors coming from Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria. The recurring themes of the stories include the effects of new technologies on Arab society, deeply rooted in community life and far from Western individualism, as well as anxiety about the devastation produced by climate emergency or nostalgia for a past which, although difficult and troubled, it is still able to ensure cultural roots and identity to the characters.
The stories included in
are therefore full of melancholy, social tensions derived from political conflicts, and the need to distance themselves from the categories and clichés formulated by the West. All these themes mix with the rich literary tradition of the Arab peoples and their past as colonized communities to propose nine futuristic scenarios, alternatives to the existing reality. Table of contents
0.0 Introduction by Cristina Jurado
1. Pan-humanism Hope and Pragmatics by Sara Saab and Jess Barber (Lebanon and USA)
2. The Standard of Ur by Hassan Abdulrazzak (Iraq)
3. The Bahrein Underground Bazar by Nadia Afifi (Bahrain)
4. A Day in the Life of Anmar 20X1 by Abdulla Moaswes (Palestine)
5. Cinammon Chewing Gum by Maria Dadouch (Siria)
6. To New Jerusalem by Farah Kader (Palestine-USA)
7. Exhibit K by Nadia Afifi (Bahrain)
8. A Jaha in the Metaverse by Fadi Zaghmout (Jordan)
9. Master of Mediterranean by Emad El-Din Aysha (Egypt)
10 Afterword: Arabic SF - The Hope for a Better Future and Past by Emad El-Din Aysha