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First Arabic Detective Novel
"Crime fiction aficionados have been waiting for the release of 'The Final Bet,' the first Arabic detective novel published in English. 'The Final Bet' is the dark tale of a handsome young Moroccan lawyer, Othman, accused of killing his much older French wife. The author, Abdelilah Hamdouchi, is a Moroccan crime novelist and an award-winning screenwriter for television and cinema. All of his eight police novels including 'The Final Bet' have been produced for Moroccan television.
"Crime fiction is not popular in the Arab world. In fact, some Arab writers take a dim view of detective stories and do not consider the genre a noble one. The Egyptian novelist Radwa Ashour (who is married to Mourid Barghouti) admits she was humiliated when she was asked why she did not write crime novels with a wide readership. She believes that she does not have to be read at any cost and so bow to market conditions.
"However, a growing number of Arab writers are turning to the West, looking for both, recognition and a wider readership which eludes them at home. As they face the prospect of being known abroad, Arab writers have to deal with the problem of finding a good translator. The global success of 'The Yacoubian Building' was widely due to Humphrey Davies superb translation. Arab writers who want to be read abroad are also reminded by western publishers that global trends influence readers’ tastes. Moreover, few publishers are ready to take the risk of releasing a book which will not sell because of its unappealing content.
"Jonathan Smolin provides us with a useful translator’s after word in which we are told that the first modern Arabic police novel originated in Morocco during the mid-1990s. 'This new form of writing directly engages hard-hitting issues such as crime, human rights and state authority, providing a powerful medium for social critique. In 'The Final Bet,' originally published in 2001, Abdelilah Hamdouchi continues this literary experiment by engaging the themes of police reform and legal rights by means of the fictional story of Othman, a young Moroccan accused of murdering Sofia, his much older wife,' Smolin explains.
"The title of the novel is partially explained in the final pages of the novel when Alwaar, the police detective, challenges Othman’s lawyer, Hulumi to a bet. He asks him to find the element in his report which proves Othman’s innocence: 'Sofia wasn’t trying to pull the picture toward her,' said Alwaar with determination, staring at Hulumi. 'She was pointing to her son as the killer.' Hulumi let out a ringing laugh. 'You wouldn’t have noticed that, Alwaar, if Othman was convicted,' said Hulumi. 'You’re interested in it only because he was proven innocent. Sorry, you lost the bet!' In an interview to the Moroccan daily 'Al Sabah,' Hamdouchi explained that 'The Final Bet' is 'the bet that Morocco now faces, a bet on democracy, human rights, and establishing a state of law.' [...]"
Source: Arab News (Saudi Arabia), June 12, 2008
Posted at: 2008-06-16
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