Featuring the work of 79 outstanding writers from all over the Arabic-speaking world, from Morocco in the west to Iraq in the east, Syria in the north to Sudan in the south, this treasury of Arab voices is diverse in styles and concerns, but united by a common language. It spans the full history of modern Arabic literature, from its roots in western cultural influence at the end of the nineteenth century to the present-day flowering of Naguib Mahfouz's literary sons and daughters.--From publisher description.