{"product_id":"the-book-censors-library-by-bothayna-al-essa","title":"The Book Censor's Library by Bothayna Al-Essa","description":"\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e is a rallying cry for bibliophiles everywhere.\" \u003cstrong\u003e--\u003cem\u003eTime Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e, the 100 Must-Read Books of 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Bothayna Al-Essa's \u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e is a necessary masterpiece, proving that true fiction is not an escape into a dreamlike Wonderland but a cautionary excursion into the depths of the human condition. More than ever, we need Bothayna Al-Essa's rallying cry against censorship, be it political, religious or academic, because, as her novel so brilliantly illustrates, censorship is always an admission of intellectual cowardice.\" \u003cstrong\u003e--Alberto Manguel, author of \u003cem\u003eA History of Reading\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"An urgent, sweeping call to arms for the protection of books and book lovers everywhere.\" \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e--Kirkus Reviews\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Al-Essa (\u003cem\u003eLost in Mecca\u003c\/em\u003e) riffs on Kafka with this canny story of a book censor who transforms into a reader. Throughout, Al-Essa lays out the supposed dangers of reading in coolly ironic terms. . . This allegory brims with intelligence.\" \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e--Publishers Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Meaning, metaphor, and the material are all at stake in this sly fable of a near-future won by censors who ban not just books but imagination, dreams, and desire. Like the fluffy white creatures munching cabbage across these pages, I fell right down Al-Essa's rabbit hole--I'd follow these characters anywhere.\" \u003cstrong\u003e--Emily Drabinski, president of the American Library Association\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Expertly infusing both comedic heart and dystopian warning, Bothayna Al-Essa reminds us how lucky we are to embody the stories we love.\" \u003cstrong\u003e--Jade Song, author of \u003cem\u003eChlorine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e was a riveting tale that was part homage to books and reading and part social commentary of the horrors of authoritarianism. Full of literary references, it's a treasure trove of Easter eggs for those keen to spot every mention and every metaphor. But it was also a captivating story as we follow the book censor through his journey uncovering the delights and dangers (at least in his world) of literature.\" \u003cstrong\u003e--Nicki J. Markus, author of \u003cem\u003eTime Keepers\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Bothayna Al-Essa's claustrophobic satire summons the spirits of Orwell, Carroll, and Kafka, serving as a sharp reminder to cherish free speech. . . . a fast-paced meditation on the power of language to stir us out of numbness.\" \u003cstrong\u003e--Farah Abdessamad, \u003cem\u003eThe New Arab\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Time will tell whether \u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e possesses the same kind of world-changing verve of, say, Orwell's \u003cem\u003e1984\u003c\/em\u003e. . . . In the meantime, call all your friends, and especially your enemies, in Florida, and let them know that you've heard that Al-Essa's novel might, especially with its liberal use of unregulated rabbits, be even more dangerous than some already banned books.\" \u003cstrong\u003e--Bruce J. Krajewski, \u003cem\u003eAncillary Review of Books\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"At once fascinating and disturbing. Like other stories about books and writing, \u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e drags the reader into itself, claiming to be one kind of book but unexpectedly (and imperceptibly) turning into another.\" \u003cstrong\u003e-- Rachel Cordasco, \u003cem\u003eNecessary Fiction\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Al-Essa's satirical novel is fierce and unrelent-ing. . . . It's about critical thinking, creativity as an act of rebellion, the difference between resistance and revolution, and the lengths we'll go to protect the people we love.\" \u003cstrong\u003e-- Alex Brown, \u003cem\u003eLocus Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"More than just a surreal fantasy, \u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e is also a fable of life and resistance under an oppressive regime. . . . bitingly satirical and engaging throughout.\" \u003cstrong\u003e-- Sanjay Sipahimalani, \u003cem\u003eHindustan Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFINALIST, National Book Award for Translated Literature, 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA perilous and fantastical satire of banned books, secret archives, and the looming eye of an all-powerful government.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe new book censor hasn't slept soundly in weeks. By day he combs through manuscripts at a government office, looking for anything that would make a book unfit to publish--allusions to queerness, unapproved religions, any mention of life before the Revolution. By night the characters of literary classics crowd his dreams, and pilfered novels pile up in the house he shares with his wife and daughter. As the siren song of forbidden reading continues to beckon, he descends into a netherworld of resistance fighters, undercover booksellers, and outlaw librarians trying to save their history and culture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReckoning with the global threat to free speech and the bleak future it all but guarantees, Bothayna Al-Essa marries the steely dystopia of Orwell's \u003cem\u003e1984\u003c\/em\u003e with the madcap absurdity of Carroll's \u003cem\u003eAlice in Wonderland\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e is a warning call and a love letter to stories and the delicious act of losing oneself in them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBothayna Al-Essa\u003c\/strong\u003e is the bestselling Kuwaiti author of nearly a dozen novels and additional children's books. She is also the founder of Takween, a bookshop and publisher of critically acclaimed works. Her most recent book, \u003cem\u003eThe Book Censor's Library\u003c\/em\u003e, won the Sharjah Award for Creativity in the novel category in 2021 and is her third novel to appear in English, after \u003cem\u003eLost in Mecca\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eAll That I Want to Forget\u003c\/em\u003e. Al-Essa was author-in-residence at the British Centre for Literary Translation for the summer of 2023, and the recipient of Kuwait's Nation Encouragement Award for her fiction in 2003 and 2012. She has written books on writing and led writing workshops throughout the Arab world.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2024\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Restless Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52797897113885,"sku":"9781632063342","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0511\/5897\/files\/Screenshot2026-08-21at1.53.18pm.png?v=1787334813","url":"https:\/\/www.middleeastbooks.com\/products\/the-book-censors-library-by-bothayna-al-essa","provider":"Middle East Books and More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}