The novels of Saddam Hussein

December 19, 2003 2:43 PM

The novels of Saddam Hussein The dictator published Be Gone Demons!, his fourth novel in as many years, around the time of the American invasion. Excerpts.
posted by Daze (6 comments total)

This originally appeared in the Telegraph -- article and excerpts -- which has a free-but-nosy registration policy. From the excerpts:

Salim freed his long hair. He was so strong. He was fighting the Romans like a hawk. He was riding a white horse and shouting: "Allah akbar! Long live the Arabs and long live Islam!"

Salim was carrying a sword and his colleagues were giving him another sword when the first was broken. The Romans ran away as Salim got close to them.

posted by Daze at 2:46 PM on December 19, 2003

I'm waiting for the Dale Peck review.
posted by phong3d at 2:59 PM on December 19, 2003

What language are these books written in?
posted by elwoodwiles at 3:23 PM on December 19, 2003

Cheese has no language, silly! - It's just cheese.

I bet Saddam did have a lot of demons chasing him.
posted by troutfishing at 4:16 PM on December 19, 2003

I think that it's important to remember that these are translations. While the original intent of his novels may have been heavy-handed allegory, there's more than one way to translate a phrase like "he was fighting the Romans like a hawk".

Has anyone read these books in their original language who can give us an idea of what they're like?
posted by interrobang at 8:46 PM on December 19, 2003

the first one's ok. it's like jurassic park but in the future.
posted by mcsweetie at 9:07 PM on December 19, 2003