Lyrics Alley

Author’s Note & Acknowledgements

Although this novel was inspired by the life of my uncle Hassan Awad Aboulela, I have altered many aspects of family history and inserted imaginary characters in order to produce a work of fiction and not an accurate biography of the poet’s life.

I am deeply grateful to my aunt Hajjah Rahma Aboulela (Hassan’s sister) for planting the seeds of this novel in my mind and for capturing my heart with her vivid memories and eloquent, lasting emotions.

Thanks equally to my cousin Tal’at Aboulela and his wife Fatma Ezzedin who provided me with materials and patiently answered my questions.

My grateful thanks to Dr Hashim Mirghani El Haj, from the Arabic Department of the University of Sudan, for helping me gain a better understanding of Hassan’s work and his position as a popular lyrical poet.

Enormous thanks to my brother Khalid Aboulela for all the generous emails and for finding that tape! And to my cousins Yousra Aboulela and Dr Muhammad Awad Aboulela whose insights and suggestions set me off in rewarding directions.

I am grateful to Mrs Suad Abdelrahman for sharing with me her memories of the bridal dances in Umdurman. And to Jeannine Bardh for help with the family tree.

My beloved late grandmother Haggah Leila Muharram spoke to me often of Cairo in the 1950s and answered my questions in many happy conversations. Also my father’s best-friend, our dear late Uncle Abdu Abdelhafiz (may Allah grant them all mercy) shared his memories of Khartoum and Umdurman in the 1950s. In this I am also indebted to The Sudan Journal of Ismay Thomas, edited by Graham Thomas, especially Ismay’s entries which describe her encounters with the Aboulela family. Al Khartoum Ayaam Zamaan (Khartoum in the Old Days) by Ahmed Abdel Wahab Said also became an invaluable companion.

The extracts of Hassan’s poems which appear in the novel are my translations (and sometimes improvisation). I used the texts in the printed tribute Hassan Awad Aboulela — Sha’ir al-Hob wa Al — Amal (The Poet of Love and Hope) by Sherief El Fadel Mustapha.

I also translated the poem ‘I am Umdurman’ by Abdallah Muhammad Zein from his collection Min Umdurman illa London (From Umdurman to London).

Other valuable resources were the lectures Mercy Oceans Book Two by Sheikh Nazim El-Naqshabandi, the tribute Saad Aboulela: Rihlat Al-Omr (A Life’s Journey) by Bashir Muhammad Said, Cairo the Glory Years by Samir W. Rafaat and the paper The Sudanese Private Sector: An Historical Overview by Robert L. Tignor.

It has been a true privilege to have as my editors Arzu Tahsin (W&N) and Elisabeth Schmitz (Grove/Atlantic). I cannot thank them enough for their enthusiasm and excellent advice; their brilliant editorial notes and their unique discernment.

From my early start as a writer I have been blessed with the support of my agent Stephanie Cabot. Enormous thanks to her for her flair and insight and for supporting me for so many years.

Lastly, the two most influential loves of my life, my husband and first reader Nadir Mahjoub and my mother Dr Mona Khalifa — endless gratitude, beyond words, for enveloping me in your wisdom and care.