Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Nov 2008
288 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publication Information
The Blue Manuscript is the ultimate prize for any collector of Islamic treasures. But does it still exist, and if so, can it be found? In search of answers to these questions, an assortment of archaeologists heads for a remote area of Egypt, where they work with local villagers to excavate a promising site.
Interspersed with the testimony of the early medieval calligrapher who created the Blue Manuscript, Sabiha Al Khemir's subtle, graceful narrative builds into a rich tapestry of love, hope, despair, greed, fear and betrayal. Intensified at every turn by the uneasy relationship between Islam past and present, and between Islam and the West, The Blue Manuscript is a novel which will resonate long after the astonishing solution to its mystery has finally been revealed.
"Starred Review. The author's pithy and wise observations are rooted in contemporary sociopolitical realities and make this an exceptionally complex, engrossing, and poignant story." - Library Journal.
"Al Khemir seduces readers with the manuscript's mythical beauty and the philosophy of its art form. Calligraphy is 'a direct reflection of the text's spirit onto the page ... The traced words were not images. They were not sound. They became rhythm which was not that of the reading of the text but that of its internal structure, which could neither be explained nor interpreted.'" - The Independent (UK).
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Sabiha Al Khemir was born in Tunisia. She is an author, illustrator and Islamic art historian. She has also written and presented television documentaries. She was the founding director of the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, Qatar.
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