Blog Posts by Subject: History of the Middle East

Perhaps no person in human history is more controversial than Jesus of Nazareth. The parable above (among many other well known ones) came from Jesus in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. In these quotes, Jesus emphasizes spiritual morality and responsibility; they also set up the foundation of Christianity. Despite the numerous teachings and sayings in the NT, Jesus is still an enigmatic figure shrouded in mystery; there is scant evidence about him that remains unclear, as he did not leave much behind regarding his own personal narrative and history. 

According to the BBC News, "Islam is widely considered Europe's fastest growing religion, with immigration and above average birth rates leading to a rapid increase in the Muslim population." There are currently over 15 million Muslims (Sunni and Shiite) living in Europe and Islam is currently the second largest religion in the world after Christianity.

This blog post will focus on NYPL’s rich collection on the history of Islam in Europe: past and present; the historical, political, cultural, and economic relationships between the states of Europe and the Middle East concerning multiculturalism, integration, segregation, gender and democracy.  

Deep inside the NYPL’s Bryant Park Stack Extension (known as BPSE to insiders — pronounced as “Bip-See”) lay many literary treasures and secrets; some are academically obscure and rare while others are widely known and read. The Book of Khalid by Ameen Rihani fits in between.

What initially drew me into reading The Dressmaker of Khair Khana was the beautiful book cover and title. Call me superficial but yes, I am indeed guilty of judging many a book by its cover. But as I went on to read the summary on the inside of the book jacket, I found myself even more interested and so I began reading what is now one of the most memorable books I've ever read. The best part is, this is actually based on a true story.

April 2011 marks the 16th anniversary of National Poetry Month, and we shall embark on this sweet 16 with an appreciation of everyone's favorite Sufi mystical poet, Jalāl ad-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī, otherwise known as Rumi (1207 - 1273 AD). Born in a remote Persian village in the region now known as Tajikistan, Rumi wrote poems of longing and ecstacy that made sweeping parallels between romantic and spiritual love. He was particularly fascinated with the use of music, dance, and poetry as the means for acheiving communion with the divine. We will discuss the following poem, which is a translation by Coleman Barks. Translated versions of poetry may risk appearing as a 

William Doyle, a writer in residence in the Library's Allen Room, thinks so.  His new book A Soldier's Dream explores the question of whether one young American soldier helped change the course of the Iraq War? 

Jews and Muslims have a particular attachment to languages as expressions of the Word of God. Hebrew and Arabic are both sacred languages since both are in a sense the language of God Himself.

But there is an important difference. The Jews lost their Hebrew as a living language while the Bible was still in the process of formation. As a result, some of the last sections of the Book of Daniel are not in Hebrew but in Aramaic, a closely related Semitic language spoken by many in the Middle East, including Jesus, in post-Exilic times.

Rasheed symbolizes the oppression of women. At first his oppression seems benign but soon he is a danger to Mariam, Laila and Aziza. What might the three women symbolize?

What point is made by the description of the Bamiyan trip? What may the two Buddhas symbolize? (Consider the reality of what happened to the statues in 2001).

"One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs,
Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls."

What does this quotation from Saib-e-Tabrizi's poem tell us about the characters and / or situations in the book? In other words, what is the significance of the title?

As always, please feel free to add 

A Thousand Splendid Suns starts with a term of abuse thrown at one of the protagonists — Mariam — by her mother: "harami." The word means illegitimate and would be deeply hurtful to someone from a culture that prizes patriarchy. To be without her father's name and patronage is Mariam's curse. It shapes her character and her destiny. What is interesting is that despite Jalil Khan's rejection and Nana's warnings, Mariam worships her father. Her feelings for Nana are more ambivalent. Nana's depression and epilepsy make her a difficult parent but she tries to forearm Mariam by telling her, " ... a man's accusing finger always finds a woman. Always." Mariam will remember this all 

The Reader's Den book discussion for June will be A Thousand Splendid Suns.