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The Book of Khalid

First published: 1911
Pages: 227

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About this book

First published in 1911, this philosophical novel follows two Lebanese boys, Khalid and Shakib, who leave the old country for the immigrant streets of New York. Khalid gives up peddling for books, politics, and grand ideas, but his restless spirit lands him in prison and eventually drives him back to Lebanon, where his heretical convictions and a forbidden love bring him into open conflict with the religious authorities. Rihani gives the story a strong satirical edge while pressing serious questions about faith, reform, and an identity caught between East and West. Often called the first novel in English by an Arab author, and illustrated in its original edition by Kahlil Gibran, it remains a landmark of Arab American writing. This free PDF and EPUB edition brings the full text to new readers.

About the author

Ameen Rihani

Ameen Rihani (1876-1940) was a Lebanese American writer, poet, and thinker regarded as a founder of Arab American literature. Writing in both English and Arabic, he argued for reform in the Arab world and for greater understanding between East and West.