Minor Detail: Trespassing the Limits of Language

Adania Shibli

Adania Shibli (Palestine, 1974) has written novels, plays, short stories and narrative essays. She has twice been awarded with the Qattan Young Writer's Award-Palestine in 2001 on her novel Masaas (Al-Adab, 2002; translated as Touch, Clockroot, 2009), and in 2003 on her novel Kulluna Ba’id bethat al Miqdar aan el-Hub (Al-Adab, 2004; translated as We Are All Equally Far from Love, Clockroot, 2012). Her latest is the novel Tafsil Thanawi (Al-Adab, 2017, translated as Minor Detail, Fitzcarraldo Edition/UK, and New Directions/USA, 2020), which was shortlisted for the National Book Award in 2020, and in 2021 it was nominated for the International Booker Prize. Shibli is also engaged in academic research and teaching in different universities across Europe, as well as at Bniversity, PalenstineBirzeit University, Palestine (2012-2018).