Love in the Time of War on Terror
By A.H. Cemendtaur

Many in India and Pakistan may understand each other in spoken language, but when presented on paper the bridge between Hindi and Urdu writings is often made with English.  Consequently when Moazzam Sheikh translated many contemporary Pakistani stories into English and the collection titled “A Letter from India ” got published by Penguin in 2004, Sheikh’s translation became an instantaneous hit among literati on both sides of the border. 
Moazzam Sheikh who currently lives in San Francisco writes in three languages -- English, Punjabi, Urdu -- and has unofficially become the official translator of Intizar Husain’s Urdu stories.  His newest book “The Idol Lover O Stories of Pakistan ”, a collection of ten short stories, has been published by Ithuriel’s Spear, a division of Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco. 
On September 3 a book-reading featuring Moazzam Sheikh was held at the Mountain View branch of Books, Inc.  Sheikh amused the audience while reading excerpts from “Idol Lover.”
[See online photos at Karachi Photo Blog.]

 

 

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