Top Arabic authors: 39 under 39-years-old

For Beirut39, "39 authors under 39" were chosen by a jury of four well-known and respected Arab writers, academics and journalists: Abdo Wazen, Lebanese poet and cultural editor of the international daily Al-Hayat newspaper; Alawiya Sobh, Lebanese writer; Saif Al Rahbi, Omani poet and editor-in-chief of the cultural magazine Nazwa; and Dr. Gaber Asfour, Egyptian literary critic and Honorary President of the judging panel.

One author on the list:

Randa JARRAR (Palestine/Egypt/US)

Randa Jarrar is an award-winning short story writer, novelist, and translator born in 1978. Her first novel, A Map of Home, was released to critical acclaim in six languages, and won the Hopwood Award, the Gosling Prize and the Arab American Book Award. She is at work on a new novel and a collection of short stories. She was raised in Kuwait and Egypt, and moved to the US in 1991.

Read about another writer on the list.

Visit Randa Jarrar's website.

My Book, The Movie: A Map of Home.

--Marshal Zeringue