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Love & Lust Smorgasbord

 



We Wrote in Symbols, Love and Lust by Arab Women Writers 
Edited by Selma Dabbagh 
Literary anthology  
Saqi Books, September 2021  

We Wrote in Symbols offers a collection of poetry and prose that deciphers the signposts for the phases and stages of longing, lust, and love: anticipation, courtship, intoxication, commitment, adoration, in/fidelity, betrayal, complacency, danger and more. Women of Arabic heritage from around the world and across three millennia most often celebrate, sometimes ridicule, and all evaluate the nuances of sex and love and their power dynamics. The first prose selection, “A Free Girl's Tale" by Saeida Rouass*, examines agency and consequences. The protagonist realizes, “As I wondered in my naivety I had no inclination that my simple existence shook the very foundations of power…” Much later in this collection Hanan al-Shaykh's longer “Cupid Complaining to Venus" thematically overlaps and diverges from S.R.’s interpretation of the erotic deity. Malika Monstadraf's “Housefly" poignantly distills the essence of anticipation. “At Last" by khulud khamis [sic] resonates with succinctly piercing heartache. There's the voice of unapologetic demand in Rita El Khayat's “Messalina Unbound" in eleven compelling verses. Metaphorical cheekiness in “If You Want to Know" by Umm al-Ward al-Ajlaniyya. “Arachnophobia" by lisa luxx [sic] entangles provocative themes with unconventional text formatting. Appropriately, the Cinderella spin of “Happy Endings" by Zaynab Fawwaz appears among the last few contributions.  

In the prose and the poetry it's mostly women's points of view, but not all, as in the reality morphing “Tangled Roots" by Noor Mohanna. Overall, We Wrote in Symbols examines and honors humans as embodiments of multifaceted layers of generations of sensory and cultural experiences from the sweet and self-effacing conciliatory to the sour and violently combative and every combination between these two extremes. Every word offers worthwhile reading including the introduction, footnotes, glossary, list of suggested additional reading, acknowledgements, authors' biographies and credits. Allowing time to savor is highly recommended.  


*Saeida Rouass is scheduled to be a panelist for the featured discussion of adaptations during the third annual The Write Women Book Fest (for which Cardyn Brooks is the outreach coordinator) on Saturday, October 9th from 12 noon to 5 p.m. at Marietta House Museum in Glenn Dale, Maryland.  


More Love & Lust Reads  

o Ripple effects of addiction and trauma  
The Summer of No Attachments by Lori Foster  
Contemporary romantic women's fiction  
HQN Books, June 2021  


Life's Too Short (Friend Zone #3) by Abby Jimenez  
Contemporary romantic women's fiction  
Forever, April 2021  

“Well, Dad doesn't believe in expiration dates, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.”  

“… The universe doesn't give a sh**, it's a total a**hole.”  


The Happy Ever After Playlist (Friend Zone #2) by Abby Jimenez  
Contemporary romantic women's fiction  
Forever, April 2020  

Goodhearted dog rescuer morphs into well-intentioned dognapper. Messy, charming romance ensues.  


The Friend Zone (#1) by Abby Jimenez  
Contemporary romantic women's fiction  
Forever, June 2019  

Mischief maker in crisis collides with potential new partner in mayhem who turns out to be ride or die.  
[This reviewer unintentionally read The Friend Zone series in reverse order with great pleasure and no confusion.]  


o Candidates for intensive therapy  
The Russian Cage (Gunnie Rose #3) by Charlaine Harris  
Alternate history fiction  
Gallery/Saga Press, February 2021  

Gunnie Rose: I felt all kinds of ways, and I wanted to sit and be quiet for a spell.  


The Bookshop of Second Chances by Jackie Fraser  
Contemporary romantic women's fiction  
Ballantine Books, May 2021  

Thea: Oh my God, it would make a good book… Posh People Behaving Badly… 

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