Karim Alrawi

Writer, playwright

• Birthplace: Alexandria, Egypt

Significance: Karim Alrawi is an Egyptian-Canadian playwright and author. His works, which include plays, a novel, and several children’s books, generally deal with Arab culture and history. He is also known for his support of human rights initiatives worldwide.

Background

Karim Alrawi was born in Alexandria, Egypt, and said he had many pleasant memories of his childhood there. In one memory, when he was ill as a child, a young babysitter attempted to use a spell to cure him. For the spell, she used lines from an impressive-looking book which she thought was the Quran; however, it turned out to be The Thousand and One Nights. Alrawi later joked that he was cured by this classic fictional tale.

In his early teens, Alrawi and his family moved to England, where he finished high school and university. Following his graduation, Alrawi embarked on his lifelong journey of writing. His early works were meant for theatrical and radio performances and he later wrote for television shows. His plays appeared in the Royal Court Theatre and the Theatre Royal Stratford East, among other venues.

Life’s work

As a young man, Alrawi returned to his native Egypt. There, he worked as a journalist, became a creative-writing professor at the American University in Cairo, and worked in the theater department. He also wrote four Arabic-language stage plays during this period. In ways, he loved revisiting the land of his youth and soaking up its unique people, places, and words. In other ways, he became deeply uneasy about the Egyptian government, which he felt had become oppressive.

While keeping up with his writing and teaching, Alrawi became increasingly active with social organizations such as the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights. He also took a leadership position with the Egyptian branch of PEN (Poets, Essayists, Novelists), a group that promotes social reforms through writing. His activity with human rights organizations and his critical perspectives on the government led to some unwanted attention, and members of Egypt’s State Security briefly arrested Alrawi for questioning.

Seven years after returning to Egypt, Alrawi received a Fulbright scholarship and left the country. He moved to the United States and then to Canada. Through his travels, he noted that he had good experiences in each country he lived in, but never felt truly at home in any. In the United States, Alrawi took an increased interest in his family history and in the literary legacy of Egypt and other Arabic countries, and began blending work in Arabic and English.

In Canada, Alrawi reconnected with members of his family living there. He earned a master of fine arts degree from the University of British Columbia and accepted a teaching position at the University of Victoria. He also traveled widely in North America and served as resident writer at several theaters in the United States, as well as becoming an International Writing Fellow at the University of Iowa.

However, throughout his experiences in America, he did not forget his Middle Eastern roots. Alrawi worked as editor of an Arab-American magazine, Arabica, and contributed to several charitable organizations and projects in North Africa and elsewhere. One of the most impactful events of his life took place in 2011 when he was visiting Egypt.

That year, a series of major uprisings occurred throughout much of the Arab world, events collectively known as the Arab Spring. Protests began in Tunisia and spread to several other lands, including Egypt. During these uprisings, people of these countries called for an end to government oppression, corruption, and economic stagnation. Many protests were quelled with violence by authorities, but some managed to secure some important regime changes and reforms.

Egypt was the site of some of the most dramatic moments of the Arab Spring. Alrawi was in a hotel overlooking a major pro-democracy demonstration in Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt. He witnessed the actions of millions of protestors and saw government forces attacking them. Later, he observed protestors holding their ground until the country’s controversial president, Hosni Mubarak, resigned from office.

These experiences inspired Alrawi’s first novel, Book of Sands: A Novel of the Arab Uprising. This book outlined some of the dramatic events of the period, but also emphasized the importance of personal virtue and responsibility in uneasy times. This novel won the first HarperCollins/UBC (University of British Columbia) Prize for Best New Fiction.

Despite his successful novel, Alrawi has spent most of his writing career creating children’s books, mostly with an Arabic theme. Among the first was The Girl Who Lost Her Smile, a picture book illustrated by Stefan Czernecki, about a girl in Baghdad who cannot find her smile until she learns some important life lessons. Another well-received children’s book was The Mouse Who Saved Egypt, a tale about a seemingly modest mouse in ancient Egypt who proves to be an important hero. In 2021, Alrawi published Arab Fairy Tale Feasts: A Literary Cookbook, which combines short stories with recipes for Arab-inspired cuisine.

Impact

Karim Alrawi has used writing and drama to help people learn about Arab cultures as well as to promote human rights and critical values such as personal responsibility. He has won many awards and honors during his career, including the HarperCollins Best New Fiction Prize, the John Whiting Award, and the Samuel Beckett Award for the Performing Arts. He also won the Egyptian Ministry of Culture’s Theatre and Youth Award twice.

Personal Life

Little information is publicly available about Alrawi’s personal life. He lives in Canada.

Principal Works

The Girl Who Lost Her Smile, 2000

The Mouse Who Saved Egypt, 2011

Book of Sands: A Novel of the Arab Uprising, 2015

Arab Fairy Tale Feasts: A Literary Cookbook, 2021

Bibliography

Alrawi, Karim. “A Writer in an Age of Anxiety.” University of Iowa, International Writing Program, www.iwpcollections.org/karim-alrawi. Accessed July 5, 2023.

“Karim Alrawi: About the Author.” Simon & Schuster, Inc., 2023, www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Karim-Alrawi/188547069. Accessed July 5, 2023.

“Karim Alrawi.” The Ottawa International Writer’s Festival, writersfestival.org/authors/earlier/karim-alrawi. Accessed July 5, 2023.

“Karim Alrawi.” The University of Iowa, International Writing Program, 2023, iwp.uiowa.edu/people/karim-alrawi. Accessed July 5, 2023.

“Karim Alrawi.” Tradewind Books, 2014, tradewindbooks.com/authors/karim-alrawi/. Accessed July 5, 2023.

Karim Alrawi Website, www.karimalrawi.com/writer/Home.html. Accessed July 5, 2023.

Paley, James. “Alrawi, Karim.” ABC Bookworld, Autumn 2016, abcbookworld.com/writer/alrawi-karim/. Accessed July 5, 2023.