Ahlam Mosteghanemi is one of the most successful Arabic Poet from Algeria. During the initial days of her career she worked as a host for a poetry show on radio as she was among the first Algerians to be educated in Arabic. She published her first collection of poems titled ‘On the Harbor of Time’ to become the first woman to write Arabic poetry. There her writings and thoughts for woman rights were not accepted by people of her community and she was refused admission for further studies. This compelled her to move to Paris to come up with her next poetry collection which was well received by the masses. She further wrote a thesis about the life of men and women in Algeria to be awarded with a doctorate in sociology. She followed this up with her debut novel ‘Memory in the Flesh’ where she portrayed her life in Paris to become the first Algerian woman novelist. This was followed by various other novels but her most notable work was the trilogy which was a huge commercial success. The renowned arabophone women novelist has voiced her thoughts on varied topics through her writings, books, work, novels and poems. Following is a compilation of quotes and thoughts by Ahlam Mosteghanemi that will give you a glimpse of her poetic mind.
I Became a free woman when I decided to stop dreaming, freedom that is waiting for nothing .. and anticipation is a state of slavery" - Ahlam (Chaos of the Senses)
The most beautiful novel is the one that starts with a sentence wholly unexpected by the reader who has lived through our storms and norms, and who might once have been the cause of our changing moods.
It is far easier for us to accept the death of someone we love than to cope with the idea of losing him and discovering that he is able to carry on with his life, in all its intricacies, despite our absence.
