Review: The Meursault Investigation by Kamel Daoud

Kamel Daoud's novel was originally published in French under the tile Meurault, contre-enquête in 2013 in Algeria. John Cullen's English translation is entitled The Meursault Investigation, and it was published in 2015. There is also an Arabic translation under the title معارضة الغريب.

By no means should this blog entry be considered a genuine review. Nevertheless, I hope some of my thoughts after reading Albert Camus's L'etranger (English title The Stranger), excerpts of Edward Said's Culture and Imperialism and Kamel Daoud's recent novel will be useful.

This does contain a few spoilers.

1. I don't think it's useful to read The Meursault Investigation without having first read The Stranger. Kamel Daoud denies that his novel is a response to Albert Camus, and I actually buy that. It's just that there's too much meta going on in Kamel Daoud's novel which a reader who hadn't read The Stranger would miss.

Interview with Maud S. Mandel, author of "Muslims and Jews in France: History of a Conflict"

Joseph Richard Preville conducted an interview with Professor Maud S Mandel on her book Muslims and Jews in France: History of a Conflict, and it was published in IslamiCommentary.org on March 31, 2014. You can also listen to an interview from March 21, 2014 from a Memphis, Tennessee radio station. I have not read the book.

Review: "The French Intifada: The Long War Between France and Its Arabs" by Andrew Hussey

Princeton University Professor David Avrom Bell (Twitter) reviewed The French Intifada: The Long War Between France and Its Arabs by Andrew Hussey in The Guardian.

My take on Andrew Hussey's "The French Intifada" http://t.co/KKTGJYUGPM
— David A. Bell (@DavidAvromBell) March 1, 2014

I have not read the book.

Updated: Interview with the author published June 27, 2014.

Review: Torture and the Twilight of Empire: From Algiers to Baghdad by Marnia Lazreg

Torture and the Twilight of Empire: From Algiers to Baghdad, by Marnia Lazreg, is an eloquent plea to end torture. Professor Marnia pursues a historical, anthropological and philosophical inquiry into France's use of torture in its war against Algerian independence from 1954-1962.