São Paulo – Writer Salim Miguel, a Lebanese who was born and raised in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, is releasing book “Nur na Escuridão” (Nur in the Dark) in his country of origin on Thursday (7). The book is the 89-year-old author’s most famous book and received important literary awards in Brazil, among them Machado de Assis Award, by the Brazilian Academy of Letters, for his joint works, in 2009. “Nur” means “light” in Arabic.
The book is based on the story of Miguel’s family, with which he arrived in Brazil at age three. It tells the story of a couple and its determination to leave Lebanon for a better life. The author, who granted an interview to ANBA by telephone, from his house in Florianópolis, where he lives, recalls, however, that family immigration served just as inspiration and that the work is a literary creation.
Despite his age, Salim Miguel gives a detailed description of the trip by Miguel to the country in the 1920s. According to him, his father’s intention, on leaving Lebanon, was to move to the United States. But the ship only went to Marseilles, France. “My father had no money, and could not stay in France,” he said. The way out was to come to Brazil, on another ship, aiming to leave the country for North America later.
But the couple arrived in Rio de Janeiro, spent some time there, then moved to Santa Catarina and decided to stay there. Salim Miguel tells of a certain sorrow of his father for never having become a man of letters, as his son did. “My father came from there to be a professor, but he never left his work in trade. And I, in this life, have only had two professions: Reading and writing,” he tells.
Salim Miguel was a journalist for a significant part of his life. Apart from having lived in Santa Catarina, he moved to Rio de Janeiro, in the 1960s, where he worked at Bloch Editores publishing house and in then famous magazine Manchete. Throughout his career he also set up newspapers and magazines, as well as working on theatre and organising cultural festivals and events.
The author also worked for cinema and wrote movie scripts for Fogo Morto (Dead Fire), by José Lins Rego, and A Cartomante (The Fortune Teller), by Machado de Assis. He is proudest, however, of the screenplay for “O Preço da Ilusão” (The Price of An Illusion), the first long movie shot in Santa Catarina, in 1957, written by himself and his wife, Eglê Malheiros.
Many books, one author
In literature, Salim Miguel has 32 books published, including novels, short stories and the story of the 48 days he spent in prison during the military dictatorship in Brazil. The Lebanese was always a disquiet and critical journalist, curious about the cultural life of Santa Catarina. His last work, in fact, called “Primeiro de Abril – Narrativas da Cadeia” (April Fool’s Day – Tales from Prison), was translated into French and published in France, in 2007.
Book “Nur na Escuridão”, which has now got a version in Arabic, has already had six editions in Brazil, the latest through Record publishing house. This is the first time that Salim Miguel will have a novel published abroad. “I owe the publication of my book to Khatlab”, says the author. He refers to Roberto Khatlab, a Brazilian who lives in Lebanon and is the director of the Centre for Latin American Studies and Culture at Saint-Esprit de Kaslik University.
Khatlab was the coordinator for translation and publication of the book by Salim Miguel in Lebanon. In Arabic, the work was entitled “From Koura to Brazil, there… and back”, in reference to the region in which the author was born. The translation, in the hands of the Lebanese-Brazilian Youssef Mousmar, was part of a programme for translation of Brazilians works developed by the National Library, connected to the Ministry of Culture. The book was published by Lebanese publishing house Dar Saer Mashrek.
Release
Salim Miguel says he would like to go to Lebanon, but the trip is too long for a person his age. He never returned to his country of origin. He still lives in Santa Catarina and has been married to Eglê for 60 years, with whom he has five children and of whom he speaks with great love. She says that we have been together for 65 years, five of them dating. “She had a job and waited for me to get a job so that we could get married,” he recalls, amused by the memory.
In Lebanon, release of “Nur na Escuridão” should take place at 5:00 pm at the 32nd Lebanese Book Fair, in the city of Antelias, at the stand of publishing house Dar Saer Mashrek. "Works by Salim Miguel transmit feelings, life. It is not easy to put the same expressions in another language. But we managed and hope for the work to be as successful in Arabic as it was in Portuguese,” said Khatlab.
*Translated by Mark Ament
