Introduction
Sahar Khalifeh (Arabic: سحر خليفة) (born 1941) is a Palestinian writer. One of her best-known works is the novel Wild Thorns (1976).
Khalifeh is the founder of the Women's Affairs Center in Nablus, which now has branches in Gaza and Amman, Jordan. Her works include several novels and essays, translated into several languages, including Hebrew, as well as non-fiction writing.
Early life and education
Khalifeh was born in Nablus, Palestine. After studying at the University of Birzeit, in the Palestinian occupied territories, she received a Fulbright Scholarship and went to continue her studies in the U.S. She got an MA in English Literature from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Ph.D. in Women's Studies from the University of Iowa before returning to Palestine in 1988.
Wild Thorns
One of her best-known works is the novel Wild Thorns (1976). An excerpt reads as follows:
- 'Halt!' The order came from a soldier sitting in front of the wooden walkway. Usama stopped, his heart pounding. 'Open your suitcase!' The Israeli stretched out his hand and rifled the contents. 'What's this?' 'Librium.' 'Yeah, you people are crazy about that stuff.'
Publications
Publications by Khalifeh
The following novels are available in translation into English:
- The End of Spring (Interlink)
- The Inheritance (American University in Cairo Press)
- Of Noble Origins (AUC Press)
- The Image, the Icon and the Covenant (Interlink)
- Wild Thorns (Saqi)
Publications with contributions by Khalifeh
- Anthology of Modern Palestinian Literature by Salma Jayyusi (Columbia University Press), contains excerpts of her earlier work
Awards
- 2006: Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature for The Image, the Icon, and the Covenant.
- 2013: The Mohamed Zafzaf Prize, Morocco
Sources
- Bio-bibliography (in French) on the site Samed devoted to palestinian literature
- Arab World Books
- al-Mallah, Ahmad. "Sahar Khalifa." Twentieth-Century Arabic Writers. Dictionary of Literary Biography Vol. 346. Gale, 2009. Literature Resource Center. Gale. 17 Mar. 2009 Gale Literature Resource Center
- Who Is Hidden beneath the Burqa? An Appeal to the West by Sahar Khalifa