Saadi Youssef

Saadi Youssef ( _ar. سعدي يوسف) (born 1934) is an Iraqi author, poet, journalist, publisher, and political activist.cite web
title = Saadi Youssef
publisher = International Literature Festival Berlin
year = 2003
url = http://www.literaturfestival.com/bios1_3_6_291.html
accessdate = 2007-05-08 ] He has published thirty volumes of poetry and seven books of prose. [cite web
title = Saadi Youssef
publisher = The Poetry Center, Smith College
date = n. d.
url = http://www.smith.edu/poetrycenter/poets/syoussef.html
accessdate = 2007-05-08 ]

Born near Basra, Iraq Saadi Youssef studied Arabic literature in Bagdad. He was influenced by the free verse of Badr Shakir as-Sayyab and Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayyati and was also involved in politics from an early age, leaving the country permanently in 1979 after Saddam Hussein's rise to power. At the time his work was heavily influenced by his socialist and anti-imperialist sympathies but has since also taken a more introspective, lyrical turn. He has also translated many well known writers into Arabic, including Oktay Rifat, Melih Cevdet Anday, Garcia Lorca, Yiannis Ritsos, Walt Whitman and Constantine Cavafy. Since leaving Iraq Youssef has lived in many countries, including Algeria, Lebanon, France, Greece, Cyprus, Yugoslavia and currently he resides in London.

In 2007 Youssef participated in the PEN World Voices festival where he was interviewed by the Wild River Review.

Bibiliography

* "Without an Alphabet, Without a Face: Selected Poems" translated by Khaled Mattawa (Graywolf, 2002) ISBN 1-55597-371-X

Secondary sources
* Huri, Yair "The Poetry of Sa’di Yûsuf: Between Homeland and Exile" (Sussex, 2006) ISBN 9781845191481

References

External links

* [http://www.wordswithoutborders.org/article.php?lab=Youssef Seven Poems at Words Without Borders]
* [http://au.geocities.com/masthead_2/issue7/youssef.html 3 poems]
* [http://www.smith.edu/poetrycenter/poets/syoussef.html 3 poems]
* [http://www.thebluemoon.com/poetry/syoussef.shtml Two poems]
* [http://web.bu.edu/agni/poetry/print/2002/56-youssef.html The Fence] a poem
* [http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/634/bsc17.htm Spiral of Iraqi memory] review of "Without an Alphabet" at "Al-Ahram"
* [http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/article.php?article_id=9512 Iraqi poet Saadi Youssef on 'bullet censorship'] at "Socialist Worker"
* [http://www.wildriverreview.com/worldvoices-saadiyoussef.php Interview with the Wild River Review]
* [http://www.wildriverreview.com/poetry_hermit.php The Hermit]
* [http://www.wildriverreview.com/poetry_moment.php The Moment]
* [http://www.wildriverreview.com/poetry_rednight.php Hamra Night (red night)English Version]
* [http://www.wildriverreview.com/poetry_rednight_arabic.php Hamra Night (red night) Arabic Version] Persondata
NAME=Youssef, Saadi
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Contemporary Iraqi-born Arabic language poet
DATE OF BIRTH=1934
PLACE OF BIRTH=Basra, Iraq
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=