The Book of Khalid by Ameen Rihani

Amine Rihani is the founding father of Arab-American literature. He was one of the founders of the “Association of Writers” (Al Rabitat al Kalamiah) for Lebanese immigrant writers in Boston that included Gibran Khalil Gibran and Michael Nakhleh. According to several academics, his novel, The Book of Khalid, is the foundation of a new trend within the Lebanese American literature. It is a trend towards wisdom and prophecy that seeks to reconcile matter and soul, reason and faith, and the East and the West in an attempt to explicate the unity of religions and represent the unity of the universe.

Al-ghirbal by Mikhail Naimy

For those who might not know, Mikhail Naimy was a Lebanese author and poet and a member of the New York Pen League. In this book, Al-ghirbal (The sieve), Mikhail Naimy defies classic Arabic literature calling for a new type of literature.

The Prophet by Gibran Khalil Gibran

A collection of 26 poetic essays written in English in 1923 by the Lebanese artist, philosopher and writer Khalil Gibran, The Prophet, tells of Prophet Al-Mustafa boarding a ship on his way back home after 12 years of exile in the foreign city of Orphalese. On his way he is stopped by a group of people with whom he discusses such issues as love, marriage, children, work, pain, self knowledge, etc. The Prophet is undoubtedly the more famous book by the more famous Lebanese writer. A classic.

Kalimat wa icharat (كلمات وإشارات - words and signs) by May Ziadeh

May Ziadeh is mostly known for her 20-or-so-year long correspondence with Gibran Khalil Gibran. The two never met but their epistolary love affair is often recounted. But May Ziadeh was much more than Gibran’s pen pal, she was a key figure of the Nahda in the early 20th century, and is known for being an "early Palestinian feminist" and "pioneer of Oriental feminism". Her book, Words and Signs, deals with the time she spent in Dhour el Choueir and Bikfaya.

Little Mountain by Elias Khoury

Novelist, journalist, translator, literary critic and book editor Elias Khoury recalls his early years in the “little mountain”, aka Christian East Beirut. The novel reflects Khoury’s disillusionment and is written in a lyrical and piercing language. As he tells his own story, his expulsion, his military engagements, his relationships, and finally his exile in Paris, Khoury tells the story of a fractured Beirut.

House of Mathilde by Hassan Daoud

Novelist, writer, and journalist Hassan Daoud’s first novel 'Binâyat Mathilde' (1983; Eng. 'The House of Mathilde', 1999), takes place in an apartment building in Beirut that is occupied by both Muslim and Christian tenants, cohabitating as the world around them falls to pieces. The novel revolves around the domestic events of the lives of these tenants bringing us to an understanding of how the Lebanese village was recreated in the city. Then the war starts and violence intrudes on their lives. Daoud himself grew up in a house where people of all religions and ethnical backgrounds lived together.

The Stone of Laughter by Hoda Barakat

This novel tells the story of Khalil, a gay man in war torn Beirut with no political or military affiliations. When the two men he loves are killed Khalil retreats into isolation paralyzed by guilt and fear. A bold and radical novel which shook preconceptions about Arab women writers.

Maryam ou le passé décomposé by Alawiya Sobh

In the early 70s, Maryam, Alawiya, Ibtissam and Yasmine, as all young women in their 20s were revolted, head strong, ready to conquer the world. By the 80s they had lost their dreams, joining ranks with the submissive Lebanese women they were surrounded by. Would things have been different if the war hadn’t happened? Aalawiya Sobh draws a merciless image of the condition of Lebanese women in the 20th century. 

Hikayat: Short Stories by Lebanese Women by Collective

This anthology of Lebanese women fiction writers is a mix of works by well established authors with the likes of Emily Nasrallah, Hanan Sheikh and Aalawiya Sobh alongside younger women and their different preoccupations. These voices bring out the complexity and diversity of our multi-cultural society by dealing with such issues as the civil war, romanticism in a conservative society, dysfunctional families, immigration, etc.