• Poetry & Literature

    Rabih Alameddine - The Hakawati

    Rabih Alameddine - The Hakawati

    Kepler's Bookstore

    August 4, 2008

    Be the first to submit a review/comment!
    Add Review/Comment

    “The Hakawati is already becoming known by both readers and critics as an important, timely story. In part it’s because of the way the book integrates ancient tales from the Middle East into the lives of one unforgettable family. But it is also because of the upheavals--the violence--taking place in Lebanon today. Fiction has always been part of the wake of real political events. People read fiction, it seems to me, to understand the truth. And they will read The Hakawati to have a connection to those events--to the turmoil faced by real people not only in Lebanon but all across the Middle East. In fiction you can immerse your imagination in someone else's imagination. You are with characters the writer has imagined, and you are living beside them; they operate as your guides to life. By the end of the book, you love those characters. You have a profound interest in where they live. That's what Rabih has done in The Hakawati with Lebanon. It is no longer merely a fictional place, no longer a place you simply read about, or see on television, in the news.” Excerpted from a review by Amy Tan

    Rabih Alameddine was born in Amman, Jordan to Lebanese parents, grew up in Kuwait and Lebanon and was educated in England and America. He is the author of the novel Koolaids, the story collection, The Perv, and, most recently, I, the Divine. His pieces have appeared in Zoetrope, The Evening Standard and Al-Hayat, among others. Mr. Alameddine, a painter as well as an author, has had solo gallery exhibitions in cities throughout the U.S., Europe and the Middle East. He has lectured at numerous universities including M.I.T and the American University of Beirut in Lebanon. Mr. Alameddine was the recipient of a Guggenheim Foundation fellowship in 2002.

    • Ticket Info

      Tickets: Free

      Info Phone: 650-324-4321

    • Dates & Times

      Dates:
      August 4, 2008

      Times:
      7:30pm

    • Venue Info

      Kepler's Books

      1010 El Camino Real Menlo Park, CA 94025

      Full map and directions

    • Parking Info

      Free underground and nearby street parking.

    • Accessibility Info
      • Wheelchair Access

    • NOTE: We do our best to ensure all information is accurate, however it's a good idea to visit the website or call the venue to verify the information.