A Poet and Bin-Laden - Hardcover

Ismailov, Hamid

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1909156302 ISBN 13: 9781909156302

Publisher: Glagoslav Publications B.V., 2012

Synopsis

The "reality novel" A Poet and Bin-Laden set in Central Asia at the turn of the 21st century against a swirling backdrop of Islamic fundamentalism in the Ferghana Valley and beyond, gives a first-hand account on the militants and Taliban's internal life. The novel begins on the eve of 9/11, with the narrator's haunting description of the airplane attack on the Twin Towers as seen on TV while he is on holiday in Central Asia; and tells the story of an Uzbek poet Belgi, who was disappointed in the authoritarian regime in Uzbekistan and became a terrorist in the eyes of the world. His journey begins with a search for a Sufi spiritual master and ends in guerrilla warfare, and it is this tension between a transcendental and a violent response to oppression, between the book and the bomb, between Archipelago GULAG and modern Central Asia and Afghanistan, that gives the novel its specific poignancy. In this book Hamid Ismailov masterfully intertwines fiction with documentary and provides wonderfully vivid accounts of historical events such as the siege of Kunduz, the breakout from Shebergan prison and the insurgency in the Ferghana Valley as witnessed by the Byronian figure of Belgi, who enters the inner sanctum of al-Qaeda, and ultimately meets Sheikh bin Laden himself.

About this title

Review

A Poet and Bin-Laden is an extraordinary and important book, providing an unique perspective on vital questions. I appreciate the book's symphonic structure, its far-reaching, modern-epic-like chorus and its weave of fact and fiction and wonder. It's a fascinating and rich book. - Jill Shoolman /US Archipelago A few of us here have now had a chance to take a look at the pages of A Poet and Bin-Laden, which show the same intelligence, wit and deep political engagement so apparent in your short stories. Your work is clearly wonderful. - David Halpern

About the Author

Hamid Ismailov, regarded as a man of "unacceptably democratic tendencies" in Uzbekistan, was forced to flee his homeland, and so came to London in 1992. He was recruited by the BBC World Service to set up its Central Asia Service. He has published many books both in Russia and in Uzbekistan, but this is the first time his work has been translated into English. Robert Chandler has translated the poetry of Sappho and Guillaume Apollinaire, as well as novels by Vasily Grossman and Aleksandr Pushkin.

About this edition

• Publisher: Glagoslav Publications B.V.
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1909156302
• ISBN 13: 9781909156302
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 268