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Article: A giant of Arabic literature. (Israeli Arab author Emil Shukri Habibi)(Mosaic)
- Article from:
- The Middle East
- Article date:
- July 1, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 IC Publications Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Emile Shukri Habibi is a chain smoking giant of Arabic literature. Dilip Hiro talked to the 1992 winner of the Israel Prize for Literature, the first Israeli Arab ever to receive the accolade, in his home town of Haifa recently.
That the award was made during the last few weeks of the Likud-led government of Yitzhak Shamir - obliging the rightwing leader to hand over the state's most prestigious prize to him, a life-long Marxist - still leaves Habibi bemused.
Sardonic humour is one of the hallmarks of Habibi's literary writing. It shines through his best known novel. The Secret Life of Saeed, the Ill-fated Pessotimist, the story of an Arab anti-hero who wants ...