BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.2.3.1//EN TZID:America/Detroit X-WR-TIMEZONE:America/Detroit BEGIN:VEVENT UID:32728@arabamerica.com DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20240521T180000 DTEND;TZID=America/Detroit:20240521T200000 DTSTAMP:20240423T003631Z URL:https://www.arabamerica.com/events/stories-from-the-center-of-the-worl d-a-busboys-and-poets-presentation/ SUMMARY:STORIES FROM THE CENTER OF THE WORLD | A Busboys and Poets Presenta tion DESCRIPTION:DC.\n\n“This volume is loaded with two dozen stories of exile \, love\, and magical realism. . . . What is impressive about this collect ion is how culturally informed and varied it is.”\n\n—Zein El-Amine\, author of Is This How You Eat a Watermelon?\n\nSTORIES FROM THE CENTER OF THE WORLD gathers new writing from the greater Middle East or SWANA — a vast region that stretches from Southwest Asia\, through the Middle East a nd Turkey\, and across Northern Africa. The 25 authors included here come from a wide range of cultures and countries\, including Palestine\, Syria\ , Pakistan\, Iran\, Lebanon\, Egypt\, and Morocco\, to name a few. In “A sha and Haaji\,” Hanif Kureishi takes up the cause of outsiders who beco me uprooted when war or disaster strikes and they flee for safe haven. In Nektaria Anastasiadou’s “The Location of the Soul According to Benyami n Alhadeff\,” two students in Istanbul from different classes—and reli gions that have often been at odds with one another—believe they can ove rcome all obstacles. MK Harb’s story\, “Counter Strike\,” is about q ueer love among Beiruti adolescents\, and Salar Abdoh’s “The Long Walk of the Martyrs” invites us into the world of former militants\, fighter s who fought ISIS or Daesh in Iraq and Syria\, and are having a hard time readjusting to civilian life. In “Eleazar\,” Karim Kattan tells an une xpected Palestinian story in which the usual antagonists—Israeli occupat ion forces—are mostly absent\, while another malevolent force seems to o vertake an unsuspecting family. Omar El Akkad’s “The Icarist” is a c oming-of-age story about the underworld in which illegal immigrants are fo rced to live\, and what happens when one dares to break away.\n\nJoining u s on the Busboys stage is editor Jordan Elgrably and local author Natashya Tynes in conversation with each other about this landmark collection of s hort stories from the greater Middle East. Copies of the book will be avai lable for purchase during and after the event\, and Elgrably will be signi ng following the program.\n\nThis event is free and open to all. Our progr am begins at 6:00 pm\, and will be followed by an audience Q&\;A. Copie s of STORIES FROM THE CENTER OF THE WORLD will be available for purchase b efore and after the event. Please note that this event is in person and w ill be livestreamed. \n\nWe ask that guests RSVP in order to receive dire ct updates about the event from Busboys and Poets Books\n\nJordan Elgrably  is a Franco-American and Moroccan writer and translator\, whose stories and creative nonfiction have appeared in numerous anthologies and reviews\ , including Apulée\, Salmagundi and the Paris Review. The cofounder and f ormer director of the Levantine Cultural Center/The Markaz (2001-2020)\, h e was producer of the stand-up comedy series The Sultans of Satire (2005-2 017)\, and the producer of hundreds of other public programs\, including t he play Sarah’s War. He is the editor-in-chief and founder of The Marka z Review\, and the co-editor (with Malu Halasa) of the forthcoming antholo gy Sumūd: a New Palestinian Reader (Seven Stories Press\, October 2024) . He divides his time between California and Montpellier\, France.\n\nNata sha Tynes is a Jordanian American author in Rockville\, Maryland\, and a regular contributor to the Washington Post\, Nature Magazine\, Elle and Es quire\, among others. Her short stories have appeared in Geometry\, The Ti mberline Review\, and Fjords. Her short story “Ustaz Ali” was a prize winner at the prestigious annual F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Festival.  She was born in Amman\, Jordan. She is the author of the speculative liter ary novel They Called Me Wyatt. ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.arabamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2 024/04/Screenshot-2024-04-22-at-8.35.24-PM.png LOCATION:Busboys and Poets 450k\, 450 K St NW\, \, Washington\, District of Columbia \, DC\, 20001\, United States GEO:38.9022398;-77.01819039999998 X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=450 K St NW\, \, Washington \, District of Columbia \, DC\, 20001\, United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=100;X -TITLE=Busboys and Poets 450k:geo:38.9022398,-77.01819039999998 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Detroit X-LIC-LOCATION:America/Detroit BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20240310T030000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE END:VCALENDAR