- Mubārak Rabīʿ (1935-, Morocco) – Rifqat al-Silāḥ… wa al-Qamar (‘Comrades in arms… and the moon’, 1976). This novel, set in the 1973 Arab Israeli war, focuses on the trench life of the Moroccan detachment in the pan-Arab army, engaged with the never-seen Israelis. Most of the narrative describes the soldiers’ conversations while they rest in relative comfort in their well-appointed trenches and their bunker (reference). The depiction of Moroccan soldiers in the novel is however not realistic, and it can therefore be considered as a critic on pan-Arabism and the lack of leadership during the conflict.
- Yūsuf al-Qaʿīd (1944-, Egypt) – al-Ḥarb fī Barr Miṣr (‘The war in Egypt’, 1978). Set at the time of the 1973 War, this novel revolves around an impersonation devised by a village headman to avoid his sons being drafted into the army: the young man is killed in action and the deception discovered, but the ensuing inquiry is stopped on order from the Cairo official (reference).
Refrences:
In order of appearance
- Ian Campell. 2015. “These Papers are intended to Mislead: Soldiers and Freedom Fighters in Mubārak Rabīʿ’s ‘Comrades in Arms… and the Moon’.” MEL 18(2): 144- 152, p. 145
- EAL, p. 628