Sam Berkson

The heart of the book are translations of Saharawi poets, and the author's own poems inspired by his time visiting the poets in Western Sahara and camps in Algeria. This is surrounded by short essays on the region, its writing, and biographies of the poets. Together this is likely to increase your knowledge and appreciation the Sahawari many times over, and consider how the plight of so many displaced people can have been almost entirely overlooked by western reporting.

Naturally the poems show more are political -- how could they be otherwise? -- but the several voices here humanise the situation and highlight our commonality as well as the big differences in our lives. An engaging format to learn about a neglected people. show less