"Etwebi maintains his composure as a lyric poet... insisting on
distilled moments of revelation while addressing his nation Libya's most
turbulent epochs ... [these] poems provide solace and rejuvenate,
holding on to memory and the purity of their anguish. This is a
stunning, beautiful book, one I've been awaiting for a long time."
Khaled Mattawa
"In Five Scenes from a Failed Revolution, Etwebi deftly moves through
time, space, argument and protest to capture the essence of the 2011
Arab Spring along with fragments from the poet's past. The work brims
with astonishing technique and lyricism, holding both the poet's
personal history and that of the onlooking world. 'Oh bird, from the
treetop, can you see Etwebia? / Can you smell the orange blossoms of my
dead brother?' In this utterly arresting image taken from 'Norwegian
Blues', Etwebi effortlessly transcends the present, shooting his poems
way into an atmosphere without end. As tragic as it sometimes feels,
this for me is the collection's most remarkable achievement."
Anthony Anaxagorou
Ashur Etwebi was born in 1952 in Libya, but fled the country in December
2014 after he was attacked by extremists and his house in Tripoli was
burned down. He is one of Libya's leading poets with 9 volumes of poetry
to his name and is also an editor, translator and painter. His poetry
has been translated into over 10 languages and before he left Libya, he
organised (with Khaled Mattawa) the first Tripoli International Poetry
Festival in 2012. Five Scenes from a Failed Revolution is Etwebi's first
full-length collection to be published in the UK.
James Byrne is a poet, editor and translator. Reader in Contemporary
Literature at Edge Hill University, co-director of EHU Press and
International Editor for Arc Publications, he has given readings across
the world, including in Libya, and is renowned for his commitment to
international poetries.
His most recent collections from Arc are Places You Leave (2022) and The
Caprices (2019).
