‘Al-Arabian Novel Factory’ by Benyamin

Al Arabian Novel Factory is a novel by Benyamin which exposes the brutalities of authoritarian regimes all over the world. Though the novel is set in a nameless Arabian country, Benyamin hints that the condition is the same everywhere. Considering the fact that most of his novels are written based on true events, Al Arabian Novel Factory could be summed up as a record of his experiences as an immigrant in Bahrain coupled with a tint of fantasy. The book has been translated into English by Shahnaz Habib with the same title which has been published by Juggernaut Books.

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Plot

Set in the aftermath of the Arabian Spring in a nameless Arabian country referred to as the ‘City’ , the novel is presented in the point of view of Pratap, a Journalist at the Toronto Sunday in Canada. He is appointed by his senior James Hogan to collect information about 17 West Asian countries between Egypt and Iran for an author who had outsourced the task of data collection. Though reluctant, Pratap at last agrees the arrangement hoping that he could meet his long lost lover Jasmine who is settled in the ‘City’.

In the ‘City’, Pratap meets the team with which he had to collaborate for the data collection which included Edwin, a British man, Vinod Chopra from India and Riyaz Malik from Pakistan. The team starts the task by travelling through the streets where they witness many mass protests against the government and by meeting many people, both popular and unpopular. During those days of extreme chaos and uncertainties, the members of the group finds that there was something secretive about Riyaz Malik. Pratap, through a secret investigation finds a book from Riyaz’s room named ‘A Spring Without Fragrance’ which contains the experiences of a Pakistani girl named Sameera Parveen as a radio jockey in the ‘City’. Estimating that the book is a part of the secrets of Riyaz, he starts reading the novel without others, including Riyaz, knowing about it.

Sameera’s novel opens a new world to Pratap. He, being a Keralite turned Canadian citizen, was not much aware about the problems faced by people in despotic countries like the one he encounters in the novel. Later, he understands much about Sameera and her novel from Perumal, Jasmine’s husband. Situation changes when the group identifies that Riyaz is arrested, and the real data collection starts with this incident. Through a quick but productive research, Pratap finds that Sameera went missing after the completion of her novel in which she opened up the cruelties of the government against people who dared to speak against them. He also realizes that Riyaz’s brother helped her with the novel because of which he was imprisoned, and that the true motif behind Riyaz joining the team was to find his brother. Through a series of incidents that follow, news arrives that Riyaz has been sent to his home country, and the novel ends with the remaining members of the team returning to their respective nations.

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My review

Al Arabian Novel Factory is of course a master piece from a great writer. The novel gives a clear and disturbing picture of the real conditions of the people living in nations like the ‘City’ mentioned here which is very dissimilar to the picture that the governments of these nations give out. Benyamin has merged the reality with fantasies and fictional characters in the novel, gifting a great experience for the reader.

Benyamin is a writer for whom I have great respect because of the research that he does for the novels. The effort that he takes for ground work is explicitly visible in his works including Al Arabian Novel Factory. But considering the fact that the novel is a thriller, I felt as if the narrative lacks something which has reduced the total effect of the novel. Still, the novel looks perfect with its brilliant characterisation and the seamless flow of events. I read the original version, which, I hope is better than the translation.

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Publisher: DC Books

Genre: Thriller

Pages: 438

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

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About the author

Benny Daniel, pen named Benyamin is a novelist and short story writer from Kerala who is widely popular for his most celebrated work Goat Days. Most of his novels are written based on true stories which gives an air of emotional intensity to the works. Other popular novels by Benyamin include Jasmine Days, which is a sequel to Al Arabian Novel Factory and is presented as the novel written by Sameera Parvin; Yellow Lights of Death and The Second Book of Prophets.