Saturday, January 31, 2015

A Brief Guide To Saddam Hussein Books

By Ines Flores


Born in 1937, Saddam Hussein ruled Iraqi as president from 1979 to 2006. He is most remembered for nationalizing the Iraqi oil industry and military. Also, he was a brutal leader, using force to maintain power. The brutality cost him his life as he was found guilty of crimes against humanity and genocide. For the offences, the Iraqi government executed him in 2006. Another thing he is remembered for is four Saddam Hussein books he wrote.

There is a total of four books and several poems published by Saddam. All his work was anonymously published under the pen name-the author. The list of his works includes Men and City, Begone, Demons, Zabibah and the King and The Fortified Castle. Some of his works found their way into the Iraqi schools curriculum. After his death, most of them became best sellers.

Saddams first novel is Zabibah and the King that is a romance novel and in 2000 published anonymously. Although mainly a romance novel, it is also an allegory and political metaphor. Hussein presents himself as the hero, the Arab while Zabibah is the people of Iraq. Her character is a beautiful woman married by unloving man and who is also the Arabs love interest.

According to the novel, the husband to Zabibah is unloving and cruel. The husband is mean to be an allegory to the United States. When he rapes Zabibah, it is a metaphor for the invasion of Iraq. Other characters represent the relationship with Israel, Jews and other the countries which the author perceives to be its enemies. This novel managed to sell over a million copies and its royalties shared among charities.

Men and the City is the third book authored by Hussein. It was published in 2002 and its style is a little bit different from the styles of the rest of these books. Men and the City is more of an autobiography telling the story of rulers grandfather against the Turks of the Ottoman Empire. It is believed that the story was ghostwritten but others claim that there is evidence to disprove this.

The Fortified Castle is Husseins third novel. Like most of the others, it is a political metaphor and allegory. Published in 2001, it is about the delayed wedding of the Iraq protagonist to a Kurdish girl. The protagonist, Sabah is a war hero from the Iran-Iraq war. The fortified castle makes a reference to Iraq with many proposals to divide its wealth.

The fourth and last novel by Saddam is Begone, Demons that is a loose translation of Get out of here, Cursed You! Written in 2003, it is an anticipation of the 2003 Iraq war. It was published in 2006 in Tokyo by a Japanese publisher. It is a work of fiction but with political metaphor. It was initially in Japanese and later translated to Turkish.

Saddam Husseins books are significant in the historical period in Iraq during the time they were written. In addition, they are significant to the former leader and his country since they were written when his demise had already begun. They are an outpour of strength, hope and ignorance.




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