Saqi Books and our Publishing Director, Elizabeth Briggs, have been shortlisted for Trade Publisher of the Year and The Ola Gotkowska Young Independent Publisher Award. Congratulations to all those shortlisted.
We are deeply saddened by the loss of Professor Daniel L. Newman.
Daniel’s passion for history, culture and the stories that connect us across time was infectious. His voice, scholarship and generosity of spirit will be profoundly missed.
Our hearts and thoughts are with our colleagues, authors, and friends across the region – in Lebanon, Iran, the Gulf and beyond – and with everyone whose lives and livelihoods are at risk.
'Queerness in these accounts is not an identification that an individual holds despite being Arab; rather, queerness for these authors is inextricable with what it means to be Arab.’
Thank you @markaz-review.bsky.social for the review! @eliasjahshan.bsky.social
themarkaz.org/kinship-and-...
LONDON ❤️
@saqibooks.bsky.social
@weatherglassbooks.bsky.social
So thrilled to share that we’ve been named a Small Press of the Year Regional Finalist at this years #BritishBookAwards!
Thank you to the judges for recognising our work. It’s an honour to publish the books we do, and we’re so grateful to the writers, readers and community who support us. #Nibbies
Out today: The Race Makers by Andrew S. Curran.
A bold new history of how modern ideas of race were shaped during the Enlightenment, when reason, science, and philosophy were used to categorise humanity itself.
Order NOW via link in bio 🔗
My latest book review in Cassandra Voices: cassandravoices.com/current-affa... (@saqibooks.bsky.social)
SO excited to announce that we've been awarded the @englishpen.bsky.social PEN Translates prize for our 2027 title, The Field!
Want to be the first to hear updates about this title — and the rest of our list? Make sure you’re subscribed to our newsletter.
Link in bio 🔗
- Daniel Newman, 'The Sultan's Sex Potions: Arab Aphrodisiacs in the Middle Ages' (Saqi Books). Find out more here: 👉 saqibooks.com/books/saqi/t...
@saqibooks.bsky.social is awesome and offering a free download of Woman Life Freedom, edited by Malu Halasa
t.e2ma.net/message/8hqv...
When organisations suppress Palestinian voices, we must amplify them.
Adelaide festival has cancelled author Dr Randa Abdel Fattah.
Solidarity now and always with Randa and the 70+ authors who stand with her.
www.theguardian.com/culture/2026...
What does it mean to archive during a livestreamed and unfolding genocide in Gaza?
How do we address the act of archiving as a productive and imaginative process that responds to destruction and erasure?
Join us on 21 January to discuss:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/archiving-...
Hello 2026! A wonderful start to the year seeing four Saqi titles on @thenewarab.bsky.social's Standout Books of 2025 list 📚
You can order all four titles via the link in our bio 🔗
On this World Arabic Language Day, we honour the profound legacy and living vibrancy of the Arabic language, carrying with it centuries of poetry, philosophy, science and artistic expression, shaping global culture in ways both visible and quietly enduring.
Artwork © Hassan Massoudy
A great episode of The Diverse Bookshelf with Hala Alyan:
'In this conversation, we explore how Hala writes about belonging, grief, and the complicated terrain of family and identity.'
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/h...
Great to see @eliasjahshan.bsky.social and @marwankaabour.bsky.social in @bookmarksbookshop.bsky.social today!
😍
Our Winter Sale is here!
Enjoy 50% off all books from 21 – 30 November.
Explore stories that inspire, challenge and delight, with proceeds supporting Taawon and The Trussell Trust.
Use code WINTER50 at checkout.
Exclusions apply.
www.saqibooks.com
Front cover of the book Archiving Gaza in the Present.
Table of contents from the book Archiving Gaza in the Present.
A spread from the book Archiving Gaza in the Present.
A quote from Daniel Gorman, Director, English PEN: 'Allows us a glimpse at the devastating impact on the cultural landscape of Gaza during Israel's genocidal war, and the crucial need to do all we can to support and champion Palestinian voices.'
We are honoured to share Archiving Gaza in the Present, edited by Dina Matar & Venetia Porter. The book reveals how conflict erases lives and memory, even as archiving, art-making and testimony endure.
Learn more or order your own copy on our website.
💖🎨
Our November pick: Love is Resistance!
Featuring 77 bold art posters that blend creativity, activism & hope.
Each piece is a powerful reminder that art is resistance.
Explore the full collection & deals at
www.pbshop.store
@saqibooks.bsky.social
Book cover superimposed over a scene of a desk or table with jars, candles, a mortar and pestle and other miscellaneous items used in the brewing of potions.
A seated man holding a book.
We’re delighted to share 'The Sultan’s Sex Potions: Arab Aphrodisiacs in the Middle Ages', edited and translated by Daniel L. Newman.
Discover how thirteenth-century scholars explored the connections between food, medicine and desire.
saqibooks.com/books/saqi/the-sultans-sex-potions
Thank you Eric Page from @scenemag.co.uk for this lovely, generous combined review of This Queer Arab Family & This Arab Is Queer 🫶
I guess I can now update my bio with “essential cultural curator”
www.scenemag.co.uk/family-matte...
(h/t @saqibooks.bsky.social)
Hala Alyan explores exile, motherhood and searching for home in a conversation with @newlinesmag.bsky.social. Her memoir 'I’ll Tell You When I’m Home', published by Saqi, dives into what it means to carry something when others can’t.
Listen now: newlinesmag.com/podcast/hala...
We’re looking for a Senior Designer to lead the visual direction of our publishing house – from book covers and interiors to branding and marketing.
If you’re passionate about design and storytelling, we’d love to hear from you.
Applications close 2 February 2026.
We're Hiring: Sales & Marketing Exec
Reminder: WE'RE HIRING!
We’re looking for a Sales & Marketing Executive who shares our passion for literature and wants to help us bring our authors to readers everywhere. Applications close 7 November.
For more info, head to www.saqibooks.com/careers
Event Dates and Title over image of sky darkened by fire and smoke
Review quotes from various publications including The New Arab, Against the Current, Middle East Policy and Anti-Capitalist Musings.
Cover of a book. It features title, author name and subtitle, and an image of people walking along a road with a smoky skyline.
Join Saqi author Gilbert Achcar this November for two talks on The Gaza Catastrophe:
📍 SOAS London – 5 Nov | 6pm | Free
📍 Blackwell’s Manchester – 19 Nov | 7pm | £4 / free w/ book
Details & tickets via our Linktree → “Events”
#GilbertAchcar #SaqiBooks #BookEvents
Saqi Books is at the Frankfurt Book Fair this week!
Find us in Hall 6.0, Stand C86 — celebrating independent publishing and showcasing bold new voices from across the Arab world.
#FrankfurtBookFair #FBM2025 #SaqiBooks #IndiePublishing
An image of author Leila Aboulela with a quote from her Pen Pinter Prize acceptance speech, 'Justice is the gravity keeping us upright as humans'.
Thrilled to see Leila Aboulela awarded the 2025 PEN Pinter Prize!
Her acceptance speech “The Inaccurate Mirror” is powerful and deeply moving.
Read it here via Wasafiri:
www.wasafiri.org/content/the-...
#LeilaAboulela #PENPinterPrize #SaqiBooks
Savage Minds Podcast Tile Image
Saqi author Gilbert Achcar joins Savage Minds (@savageminds.substack.com.web.brid.gy) to discuss his book, The Gaza Catastrophe, a vital analysis of the ongoing crisis and its historical roots.
🎧 Listen here → savageminds.substack.com/p/gilbert-ac...
#TheGazaCatastrophe #GilbertAchcar #SaqiBooks
