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Mahmoud Darwish. Memory for Forgetfulness: August, Beirut, 1982. Ibrahim Muhawi, tr. Berkeley. University of California Press. 1995. xxx + 182 pages. $35 ($12 paper). ISBN 0-520-08768-2.
For over three decades, Mahmoud Darwish has been the most prominent Palestinian poet and a major presence on the Arabic literary scene. However, of his fourteen books of poetry and several works of prose, only a few poems have been translated into English. The publication of Memory for Forgetfulness is therefore a welcome event for anyone interested in learning more about Arabic literature in general and Palestinian literature in particular. First issued in Arabic in 1986 under the title "The Time: Beirut/The Place: August," the book is at once a personal memoir, a work of history, a prose poem, and a political essay--an all-inclusive and fragmented text that defies traditional generic expectations.
Memory for Forgetfulness records the poet's experience...