This week, our editors-at-large report on new spaces and events for literature springing up even in the face of oppression and loss. From Gaza’s first public library to Xi Xi’s teddy bears to the legacy of a lost literary lion in Kenya, read on to find out more!
Shatha Abd El Latif, Editor-at-Large, reporting on Palestine
“There are moments in history when the creation of a library becomes an act of freedom itself.”
Those were the words of Omar and Ibrahim on the fundraiser campaign page they set up to build the first public library in Gaza after the genocide. Omar is a displaced Gazan writer from Beit Hanoun, and Ibrahim is an English school teacher and translator. On the page, Ibrahim describes a curious intellectual wrestling with the big dogs of the Western canon that eventually landed him at the feet of the literatures of the oppressed. Of this literature of resistance, he writes: “I felt that books themselves became a kind of land, and that the pen was a root no one could uproot.”
Omar and Ibrahim speak to their audience about a time when books were their only refuge from the horrors of the blockade, and tell us of the moments where they discovered that their books, pieces of their bereaved souls, survived the bombing of their houses. Omar’s documentation on social media of the dust-covered books, hours spent digging in the rubble, and carrying his books twelve times over with every displacement—sometimes in unique ways, i.e. in his keffiyeh, quickly sparked international interest in his and Ibrahim’s project.
Israel’s genocidal war destroyed at least twenty-one of Gaza’s libraries and killed over 45 writers and artists in Gaza in a soulless act of colonial vengeance, striking at the heart of a people’s cultural spirit. I was so incredibly moved as I scrolled down Omar’s Instagram and watched as he installed the library, book by book, on a dilapidated shelf in a tent. The steadfast mission they chose for themselves in the service of their community speaks to a not-so-unfamiliar spirit of resistance that Palestinians carried within themselves against the absolute annihilation of their home and history.
This project does not exist in a vacuum. Rather, it is rooted within a political consciousness that hails the resisting spirit in the face of a genocidal, colonial power. What we must be wary of, nonetheless, is the temptation to glorify the struggle and pain that comes with this act of preservation and perseverance born during a genocide while shying away from confronting the structural complicity of our cultural and academic institutions in the literary genocide of Gaza’s writers, librarians, and educators.
The search for a place to house Omar and Ibrahim’s library was over early this week. Following a month and a half long search, Omar announced on his Instagram that they were finally able to find a place to start building their library. There remains a long path ahead, still.
Omar and Ibrahim’s project goes well beyond just putting together a physical library space; rather, it serves a larger mission to rebuild Gaza’s literary scene and combat Zionism’s long-in-the-making scholasticidic and epistemicidic war—and their campaign’s goals, which include “[r]ebuilding Gaza’s spirit through knowledge” and “[b]uild[ing] hope and keep[ing] culture alive,” serve as further evidence.
You can donate to Omar and Ibrahim’s campaign via this link to rebuild Gaza’s first public library.
Charlie Ng, Editor-at-Large, reporting from Hong Kong
Hong Kong’s literary scene celebrated the inauguration of The Xi Xi Space, a permanent tribute to Hong Kong’s celebrated writer Xi Xi on November 9. The venue is located in Wan Chai’s Foo Tak Building, Hong Kong’s well-known hub for art and literature. As a beloved figure in Hong Kong literature, Xi Xi was known for her innovative and playful writing style and affectionate, observant narratives of urban life. The Xi Xi Space’s inaugural exhibition curated by Eva Wong and Louise Law, “Xi Xi’s Room Boxes: Beginning with Teddy Bears,” runs from November 12 to January 31. The show centers on Xi Xi’s craft of sewing plush bears—a practice she began after a cancer-related surgery impaired her right hand in 1989, leading her to write left-handed. The opening events include talks by Xi Xi’s translators, Jennifer Feeley and Karin Betz, and a book club on her novel 我的喬治亞, led by Hong Kong critic Natalia Chan and poet Stuart Lau, and moderated by Hong Kong literature scholar Marvin Yu.
This vibrant launch, however, unfolds against a backdrop of industry anxieties. Tai Kwun—the historic Former Central Police Station compound, renovated as a heritage and arts hub—has cancelled its “BOOKED: Hong Kong Art Book Fair” after organising six editions, stating a need to explore new initiatives. The decision surprised the local cultural community, as no specific reason was given. The decision follows recent controversies over the book fair, including the removal of a book by former pro-democracy lawmaker Margaret Ng last year. It also comes after The House of Hong Kong Literature halted its own fair in July, citing “uncontrollable factors.” These developments, alongside long-standing accusations of censorship at the city’s major book fair, cast a shadow over the publishing landscape.
Wambua Muindi, Editor-at-Large, reporting from Kenya
Following the death of Meja Mwangi on Thursday, December 11, it is, for Kenyans of a literary bent, a Christmas Without Tusker. Mwangi, the author of Kill Me Quick (1973), Carcase for Hounds (1974), Going Down Riverroad (1976), Cockroach Dance (1979), Mzungu Boy (1990), Striving for the Wind (1990), The Big Chiefs (2008), Rafiki Man Guitar (2013) and Christmas Without Tusker (2015), among other books, died in the coastal town of Malindi and was cremated, as was his wish, the following day. He was a pioneering post-independence writer and belonged to a crop of writers whose pens sought to confront the realities of a just independent Kenya. More specifically, he took on the plight of young men in the city, faced with the reality of inhabiting an urban space they were not prepared for, but one in which they must attempt to read and tame. This is the definitive trademark of the Mwangian character, defining his characterisation of urban dwellers like Meja and Mwangi in Kill Me Quick and Ben and Ocholla in Going Down Riverroad. Shine on your way, Meja Mwangi.
On Dec 12, Nanyuki, where Mwangi was born and raised, hosted the first-ever Nanyuki Books and Wine Festival, dubbed Tamasha Experience, at the Frontiers Restaurant. Organised by the Wine and Spine Bookshop, the day-long event included activities like kids’ crafts and games, wine tasting for adults, an author’s roundtable, and talks. The festival was graced by authors like Dennis Mugaa of Half Portraits Under Water, Maryanne O’Hara of Little Matches, children’s author Joy Tich and the literary dynamo Lexa Lubanga. The latter, an ardent supporter and promoter of the tagline ‘Read Meja Mwangi’, was visibly overcome by emotion as she discussed how, while trying to settle an issue with delayed ebook delivery after purchasing a copy from the author’s website, she ended up, to her surprise, speaking to Meja Mwangi himself on the phone. She also spoke about the incredible journey she had been on promoting the late author’s oeuvre. Her session was a tribute dedicated to Mwangi’s life and works, exploring how his writing was inspired by the place he was born, spotlighting Rafiki Man Guitar, which is inspired by his friend and specially dedicated to Nanyukians.
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