I has no book fair

The London Book Fair has been focused on literature from Arab countries and it seems to have been interesting, indeed, especially when taken in conjunction with the recent Hay Alhambra festival. The reporting on it has certainly given me a few new books and authors to read and reminded me of some old favorites. Though I am a bit bothered that, at this late date, the Guardian couldn't come up with a better title for their pretty stellar collection of statements from many different participants than "One thousand and one delights."



Only tangentially, if at all, related, but pretty much the deepest and most personal comment on the question of the veil as a choice and symbol is this post from Pakinam Amer(she is an Arab author, just an awesome journalist, rather than a fiction writer and I found it today).

Also, if I am going to be talking about awesome things in England (which seems to have been a bit of a theme lately), I must mention the Glastonbury Festival where, this year, Jay-Z and Leonard Cohen will both be playing. I find that to be pretty much the most amusing music news in a long time.