Ashraf Aboul-Yazid’s “The Interpreter”: A Global Tapestry of Voices at the Kolkata Book Fair 2026

In his fourth novel, Al-Turjuman, (The Interpreter), the author explores a complex, multi-layered narrative through a distinctive style of language and structure. Unlike his previous works—Shamawes, which depicted village life and tensions across sixty-five chapters; A Backyard Garden, chronicling the life of Mr. Kamal amidst Egypt’s 1952 revolution; and 31, a dystopian reflection on institutional dehumanization—this novel Al-Turjuman presents twenty-eight characters from diverse countries, possibly corresponding to the Arabic alphabet. The novel is notable for its multiple narrators, each isolated from one another, and for opening each chapter with a thought-provoking phrase that sets the thematic tone. Despite the multitude of voices, the titular figure, the Turjuman, remains silent throughout, serving as a unifying yet enigmatic presence. Through this interplay of perspectives, the novel examines human interaction, displacement, and the silent threads that link lives across cultural and geographical boundaries, offering a meditation on communication and the limits of understanding.

The Interpreter — a work that explores language as destiny, translation as an act of survival, and the fragile crossings between cultures, power, and memory—will be available through its prestigious publishing house, Penprints (India). The novel will be exhibited at the International Kolkata Book Fair (IKBF) 2026, scheduled from January 22 to February 3, 2026, at its traditional venue, Boimela Prangan (Central Park Mela Ground), Salt Lake, Kolkata. The 2026 edition, with Argentina as the Theme Country, is expected to attract vast audiences and present a distinguished selection of world literature, according to organizers and trade sources. At a fair devoted to voices, borders, and dialogues between nations, The Interpreter finds a fitting home—where stories travel, meanings shift, and words once again become bridges between worlds.

Ashraf Aboul-Yazid

A recording of the evening organized by the Betana Cultural Foundation for a seminar and book signing of Ashraf Aboul-Yazid’s novel “The Interpreter”, Arabic version, held at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 1, 2018, at the Foundation’s headquarters, 34 Talaat Harb Street, Cairo.

The seminar, moderated by writer Mostafa Ebada, featured critical readings by poet Ahmed El-Shahawy, Dr. Huwaida Saleh, writer El-Sayed El-Khamisy, critic Mahmoud Qassem, writer Azza Abou El-Ezz, and theatre critic Khaled Soleman. It also included recorded video testimonials on the novel by poet Hany Nadeem; novelist and short-story writer Basma Al-Khatib (Lebanon); writer and academic Dr. Hassan Homida (Sudan/Germany); writer Sami Hanna (Egypt); and writer and journalist Ahmed Saeed Tantawy of Al-Ahram newspaper (Egypt).