NOTE: BBC World Broadcast invited me to submit a question to Hisham Matar for their World Book Club interview. It broadcast on September 3, 2011. Mine is the VERY LAST QUESTION in this 53 minute interview. I would recommend the entire interview if you are interested in Libya, or in this outstanding writer—but at least, take a listen to the question from A Traveler’s Library. (You can download it as an mp3 file, or as a PodCast.)

A Book for the Middle East in Troubled Times

Destination: Libya

Book: In the Country of Men (2006) by Hisham Matar

It has been difficult for me to comprehend the arrogant statements of the dictator of Libya, Muammar Gaddafi. When he asserts, “The people LOVE me!” in the face of thousands of ill-armed, desperate rebels trying to depose him, I think he must be out of touch with reality. Continue reading Understanding Libya →