It is hard to believe that it was only in 2003 that Ibrahim al-Koni’s work first appeared in English translation. Many of his works had already appeared in many other European languages, as befitting one of the best-loved and best-selling Arabic novelists on the scene (al-Koni writes in Arabic though his first language is Tuareg). The English–speaking world finally got to journey into the spiritual desert world of Libyan-born author with The Bleeding of the Stone, which turned out to be intense and enjoyable, even in translation.

Now we have Anubis—A Desert Novel, originally published in Arabic in 2002, swiftly rendered into English by William M. Hutchins.

At first it seemed that Anubis wasn’t going to fulfill the high expectations created by The Bleeding of the Stone, which was accessible both in terms of story line and language. On the other hand, the text of Anubis initially seems heavy and cumbersome—the first few pages drag by. But just when the reader is giving up hope, the mystical world that al-Koni weaves takes hold of the pace of the novel and piques the curiosity of the reader.

Against the magnificently described desert, which is as much of a character in the novel as any human, a very strange existence unravels, layered with myths and metamorphosis. It is impossible to establish what is reality and what is a figment of the novel’s protagonist’s imagination (or heat-induced delusions). The main character changes from man to animal, meets enigmatic jinns and elusive humans and in the end finds only himself.

This confusion is never off-putting; it’s what stimulates the reader’s imagination and intellect. The protagonist’s journey takes him through a world that is riddled with multi-layered images and concepts that are intertwined with the legends of al-Koni’s Tuareg heritage. Al-Koni explores the dynamics of families through the epic and the fantastic, delving into pharaonic myths and juxtaposing them with elements of Christian motifs.

Perhaps most importantly, this very modern novel manages to remain mystical and alien to the reader while at the same time provoking emotional responses and familiar associations. With the shared theme of a mythic journey, it may be tempting to draw comparisons with The Alchemist, but this is a far richer and deeper novel. Ibrahim al-Koni’s Anubis is the novel for the readers who find Paulo Coelho irritatingly shallow. This is a true journey into the human psyche. h

Anubis—A Desert Novel by Ibrahim al-Koni, American University in Cairo Press, 2005.