Interview | Nawzat Shamdin | Granta Magazine

Nawzat Shamdin | Interview

Nawzat Shamdin & Larry Siems

Translated by Basim Mardan

‘I remain what I have always been, a human being first, and then an Iraqi. And then I am a writer.’

Nawzat Shamdin

Nawzat Shamdin is an Iraqi Kurdish writer and journalist who was born and lived for forty years in Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, until he was forced to seek refuge outside of Iraq in February of 2014. His novels include Half the Moon and The Little Aga.

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Larry Siems

Larry Siems is director of the Freedom to Write and International Programs at PEN American Center and the author of The Torture Report: What the Documents Say About America’s Post-9/11 Torture Program.

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Translated by Basim Mardan

Basim Mardan is a writer, playwright and translator from Iraq.

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