This week, our editors-at-large report on the rise of audiobooks, a festival spotlighting indigenous Indian literature, and an award-winning Palestinian memoir. From visions of Paris from a prison cell to a whistling naming tradition, read on to find out more!
Carol Khoury, Editor-at-Large, reporting from Palestine
Palestinian author Nasser Abu Srour, recently released from Israeli imprisonment, has won the prestigious 2025 Prix de la littérature arabe for his powerful prison memoir, Je suis ma liberté, translated into the French by Stéphanie Dujols. The award ceremony was held at the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris on November 18, coinciding with PEN International’s Day of the Imprisoned Writer. His memoir, written over 33 years inside Israeli prisons and smuggled out piece by piece, chronicles his experiences behind bars and his resilience in the face of oppression. It originally appeared in Arabic in 2022 titled Hikaayet Jidaar (the story of a wall) and translated into the English as The Tale of a Wall by Luke Leafgren.
Abu Srour was deported to Egypt in October 2025 as part of a prisoner exchange deal between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Abu Srour’s release shortly before receiving this honor added significant weight to the occasion. Arrested at 23 and sentenced to life imprisonment, he earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree while incarcerated. His editor praised how Abu Srour transformed his personal ordeal into timeless literature, using the motif of a personified wall as a symbol of refuge.
Speaking via video from Egypt during the ceremony, he reflected on his time in confinement and expressed gratitude to the jury for recognizing the difficult language with which he wrote about his imprisonment, which he calls “language of ‘inside.’” He poetically recounted, on the occasion of wining this Parisian prize, envisioning Paris from his small prison cell, imagining it as a city of light and hope amid hardship.
His widely-acclaimed memoir has been translated into seven languages including English and French. The Prix de la littérature arabe, an €8,000 award organized by the Jean-Luc Lagardère Foundation and the Institut du Monde Arabe, honored Abu Srour’s work for its literary strength, dignity, and unique voice. This year also introduced a translation prize, which was awarded to Stéphanie Dujols for her French translation. She plans to use the prize money to aid Gaza genocide survivors in Cairo.
Publishers and supporters now see Abu Srour’s voice as a powerful ambassador for Palestinian narratives and hope his experiences of imprisonment and freedom will inspire global audiences. Abu Srour has also written a powerful poetry collection titled ‘An al-Sijin wa ’Ashaay’ ’Ukhra (on prison and other matters) which appeared in 2021. Another book titled ’Ala Sareer al-Kitaaba (on the bed of authoring) is announced to be released in 2025 by Dar Al Adab.
Zohra Salih, Editor-at-Large, reporting from India
The festive season, which began in October, continues in India, as literary festivals mushroom in different parts of the country. It is this part of the year that I always yearn for—the feeling of being wrapped in shawls, a steaming cup of chai in hand, and plenty of literature to bask in, as the winter sunlight beckons us to make the most of the day. In Shillong this month the picturesque Ward’s Lake came alive amidst cherry blossoms last week for the 5th edition of the Shillong Literary Festival. What one wouldn’t give to be in Meghalaya, the serene, hilly landscape referred to as the ‘abode of the clouds,’ listening to a selection of acclaimed literary voices, including Booker-winning author Banu Mushtaq, Francesc Miralles, Janice Pariat, Sam Dalrymple, Shehan Karunatilaka, Prayaag Akbar, Keshava Guha, Sanjoy Hazarika, and Prof. Desmond Kharmawphlang!
A stand-out aspect of the festival was its platforming of indigenous narratives and local writers: Poetry Echoing through the Garo Hills featured powerful readings by Garo poets Prince S. R. Marak, Sengsime A. Sangma, Jakmatchi M. Sangma, Rhinkle Mrong, and Fivebilson R. Marak. Streamlet Dkhar, Bandarilin Bairo, Alfidarie Kharsyntiew, and Basilica Nongpluh’s session titled Ka Jingïaid Lynti jong ka Litereshor Khasi (Making Khasi Literature Travel) was a rich reflection on the oral roots of Khasi literature. The session traced how Khasi traditions and stories were narrated through song and oral memory, before missionaries arrived introducing script and paper, and even today, the language seeped into the very air, the very sounds that echo in the landscape. Mmhonlumo Kikon and Sanjeeb Kakoty further emphasised the need for local perspectives and retelling of histories in the session Whose History Is It Anyway?
Sahitya Akademi awardee Jerry Pinto particularly commended ‘The Forgotten Folklore Project’, launched by the Sauramandala foundation, for rendering folktales into contemporary children books, and wishing for the project to distribute the books across the country. The initiative aims ‘to bring 45 indigenous stories from the Khasi, Jaintia, and Garo regions to life for Anganwadi and primary school children in Meghalaya.’ The children and youth’s corner at the event was brimming with unique storytelling sessions and workshops. One featured ‘The Tunes of Kongthong’, a whistling naming tradition—in the East Khasi Hills village of Kongthong, every child is bestowed a distinct tune, called ‘Jingrwai Lawbei’, which is composed by their mothers as they are born. Hence the nickname ‘The Whistling Village’! The festival also officially launched anthropologist Anna Notsu’s picture book, Khâmnu Khah A Vâr Im?/Is She Wise?, a bilingual and sensitively researched children’s storybook deeply rooted in the customs of the Biate tribe from the Jaintia hills of Meghalaya, illustrated by Gladinia Pyrtuh and Biate translator Anthony Durpui.
Fittingly, the programme wrapped up with musical performances: over the course of the three days, the Meghalaya Grassroots Music Project performed at Ward Lake, followed by a different act every evening: a solo play by renowned actor Vinay Pathak, inspired by King Lear; a jazz performance by Gino Banks and his band; and finally, Alex Poulton’s presentation of the musical journey of British songs in India for the final night, concluding the enchanting festival.
Linnea Gradin, Editor-at-Large, reporting from Sweden
If you’re someone who has been keeping up with Swedish bookish news media, you’ll know that nine times out of ten, there’s a new headline on a variation of the same topic: audiobook streaming services and their increasing profits.
Nordic countries are unique in the extent to which digital subscriptions have saturated the publishing market, with over 10% of the population currently paying to access audio- and ebooks via one of the major subscription services. Storytel, one of the main actors, has in fact been so successful in their endeavours that they in 2016 bought Norstedst, the second biggest publishing house in Sweden, after alongside Albert Bonnier.
So, while e-books never took off in the Nordics the same way they did in many English-speaking markets, it is seen as a “mature” market for audiobooks. This is perhaps the reason Spotify launched its recent audiobook initiative in 17 other countries before they tackled their own home base, Sweden (alongside Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Monaco), where competition for listeners is fierce.
What does all of this have to do with translated literature, you may ask? Well, not to be dramatic, but in a country like Sweden, where audiobooks hold such a huge share of the market, it has almost everything to do with the health and future of the literary scene at large. Not only are researchers and publishers noticing how the proliferation of audiobooks is changing the way stories are told, but they are also seeing how this dominance is pushing the more “niche” literature to the side. As Spotify launches audiobooks in Sweden, the Swedish Union of Authors also noted that Spotify fails to credit the translators of the books they are streaming — they only credit the authors and narrators. So, while the future remains to be seen, one thing is clear: Spotify’s return to the Swedish market is sure to shake things up.
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