Al-Arqash's Memoirs

Hachette Antoine, under the Naufal imprint, is proud to present the towering works of Mikhail Naimy, one of the most prominent contemporary Arab writers and a leading figure among Lebanese diaspora writers. His writing is distinguished by its attempts to purify Arabic literature of embellishment and superfluous language, striving for a more realistic portrayal of things and events. His style is characterized by simplicity, clarity, and frankness, and by its avoidance of excessive expression, particularly in description, narration, and imagery. His language sometimes borders on colloquial Arabic, further attracting readers from all walks of life to his books. The central theme is love. Arqash, a cultured young Argentinian of Lebanese descent, falls madly in love with a beautiful woman. However, this love soon reveals to him the two contradictory, eternal forces that contend with humanity and are utterly different within it: love elevates us, and we become spiritually translucent, almost touching the throne of God. We desire, so we intensify our bodies and become denser. They notice that in our filth we reach the level of animals.
Al-Arqash slaughters his maiden on their wedding night, and the resulting fracture causes him to suffer amnesia. All he knows of himself is that he is a waiter at a Syrian restaurant in New York, writing his memoirs in a wooden alcove behind the kitchen where Yui used to sit every night. Na'im uses Al-Arqash as a mask to express, in the form of these memoirs, the essence of the experiences that churned within him during his youth in New York City (1916-1932).
The key to the memoirs, despite their diversity and varied themes, has always been a single note left by Al-Arqash on the bed of his slain beloved, upon which was written: “I slaughtered my love, confirming it beyond what ripens it, and you realize what my soul yearns for.” This collection of essays and short stories, in which Al-Nuaimi, with his distinctive writing style and illuminating, contemplative thought, addresses existential and social issues of humanity in its relationship with itself and life, within a framework of enlightened intellect and profound reflection, a distinctive language, and a unique and engaging style, has distinguished him as a leading intellectual and a globally influential figure.