Baghdad Central (A Hulu Series) (2025)

إذا شرعت في قراءة هذه الرواية فتأكد قبل البدء فيها عن خلفيتك السياسة للفترة التي قضى فيها الرئيس صدام حسين حكمه ومن لازمه في تلك الفترة من بطانة ورموز سياسية تحت الحكم الاوتوقراطي انذاك
الراواية تتشعب بدهاليز وعرة يختلط بها صوت الحبيب من العدو خصوصاً اذا ما وضعنا بعين الاعتبار انها كتبت بلغة عامية لكاتب امريكي له خبرة في سياسة وجيوغرافيا العراق
رواية امريكية معاصرة تتحدث عن فترة الغزو الامريكي تسرد بواقعية احوال تلك الفترة بلهجة عامية يتخللها بعض الفتور احياناً ، لكنها تستحق القراءة

I'd give it six stars if I could. No disrespect to war reporter friends (one of whom wholly recommended this book), and I know it's fiction, but this gave me a better picture of life in Iraq in 2003 than all the news stories I read put together.

كتبت مقال طويل عن الرواية يمكن قراءته هنا
https://www.almodon.com/culture/2019/...

وهذا مقتطف منه

لكن رواية "بغداد سنترال" لأليوت كولا، تأتي في المنتصف بين العالمين، معالجة أدبية فريدة من نوعها للحرب العراقية - الأميركية، وقد حولتها "القناة الرابعة" البريطانية مسلسلاً تلفزيونياً.

يقف أليوت كولا نفسه بين العالمين. فهو الأميركي الذي درس اللغة العربية وترجم عشرات الأعمال من العربية إلى الانكليزية، وهو أستاذ الأدب العربي في جامعة جورج تاون، وحينما قرر كتابة روايته الأولى، اختار أن تكون بوليسية حسب توصيفه. كما اختار أيضاً أن يكون بطل الرواية من النسيج العراقي وليس أميركياً، وليس أي عراقي، بل ضابط شرطة سابق.

محسن خفاجي هو بطل رواية كولا، ضابط شرطة يتصف بكل الصفات الجديرة ببطل رواية بوليسية مهزوم. بعد دخول القوات الأميركية، تم حل حزب البعث والجيش والشرطة، وبالتالي لا يجد محسن ما يفعله سوى الجلوس في المقهى صباحاً، وفي المساء يخرج زجاجة الويسكي ويختار كتاب شعر يقضي معه سهرته، بينما ابنته المريضة تسعل في الغرفة المجاورة.

يتلذذ خفاجي بمضغ اليأس والإحباط، فقد خسر زوجته وحبيبته في سنوات الحصار بسبب نقص الأدوية في العراق، والآن بعد دخول الأميركيين خسر وظيفته كضابط شرطة اعتاد العمل في الأرشيف. يشعر باليأس والإحباط، بينما يشاهد الحالة الصحية لابنته تتدهور ولا يجد ما يفعله.

يستيقظ خفاجي ذات يوم على أزيز الرصاص، يُقتحم منزله، ويفيق ليجد نفسه في زنزانة محبوساً مع فئات متنوعة من الشباب العربي، من جنسيات مختلفة، كلهم أتوا للانضمام للمقاومة في العراق، فانتهى بهم الحال في هذا السجن الأميركي الغامض.

يخضع خفاجي للتحقيق والتعذيب، ثم يستدعيه ضابط أميركي ويخبره أنهم فحصوا ملفه وتبين لهم أنه لم يكن عضوا فعالاً في الحزب، والعراق الجديد يحتاج لمهارته الشرطية، ويعرض عليه العمل في قوات الشرطة التي يجري تشكيلها تحت سلطة الاحتلال. يرفض محسن في البداية، لكن صفعة على الوجه تجعله يدرك أن الرفض غير مقبول. وفي المقابل، إذا قَبِل، فسيتكفلون بعلاج ابنته.

تأخذنا رواية كولا إلى منطقة رمادية لم نرها من قبل، هؤلاء الذين أجبرتهم الظروف على العمل للمحتل، فتحولوا أهدافاً لعمليات المقاومة.

تتكشف خيوط الحبكة البوليسية، حينما يكلفه مديره الأميركي بأول مهامه. يعطيه صورة فتاة جميلة ويطلب منه البحث عنها. الفتاة، واحدة من الفتيات اللواتي يعملن مع زبيدة، أستاذة الجامعة العراقية، صاحبة شبكة العلاقات الغامضة. يظن خفاجي إن زبيدة تورد الشباب والفتيات للعمل كمترجمين مع الجيش الأميركي، وهؤلاء المترجمون يتلقون التهديدات من جماعات المقاومة ويتعرضون للاغتيال والاختطاف. لكن، بينما نتقدم في الرواية وتنحل خيوط اللغز، تنقلب الصور. فالدكتورة زبيدة تقود شبكة دعارة تقدم خدماتها للضباط الأميركيين والشخصيات النافذة. وحينما يواجهها خفاجي، تدافع عن نفسها بفلسفة بخاصة قوامها خطاب نسوي يرفض وضع الضحية. تقول له زبيدة إن النساء هن أول ضحايا الحرب، إذا لم أفعل ما أفعله، فمصير هؤلاء الفتيات الجامعيات اللواتي علمتهن، سيكون الدهس تحت عجلات الحرب، لكننا معاً بنينا شبكة نافذة، تغلغلت في بنية السلطة التي يجري تشكيلها في البلاد. وفرت لتلك الفتيات الحماية، والمال الذي مكنهن من الادخار ومساعدة عائلاتهن في زمن الحرب، بل وبالنسبة للكثير منهن، لا يعدو الأمر المرحلة المؤقتة، يجمعن خلالها مبلغاً من المال، يمكنهن والعائلة من الهجرة ومغادرة البلاد.

A good surprise. An ex Iraqi policeman is blackmailed into joining the civil authority in the confused aftermath of Iraqi invasion. Does a brilliant job of bringing to life the impossible choices an ordinary man is forced to make to survive.

This is a remarkable book. Framed as a noir-ish mystery, Baghdad Central is really about so much more. Colla manages to touch on an extraordinary range of topics relevant to modern Iraq - authoritarianism; counterinsurgency; corruption; bureaucratic contracting; security theater; the very real danger involved in collaborating with an occupying force; trafficking; the decay of infrastructure; the inability of the US to understand the dangers faced by Iraqi citizens; gendered violence; the terror of living in a society without rule of law; perversion of justice; art and beauty; trust in a fractured society; the shifting lines in the sand between 'us' and 'them'; love; marginalization of scholars; the legacy of sanctions on those most impacted; social service provision; and the confusion surrounding nation-building efforts (a nation for whom?). Through it all, the book is infused by a loving use of Iraqi poetry and voice to root the happenings firmly in a cultural and geographic setting.

In less capable hands, all of this crammed into a few days would cause the narrative structure of a novel to collapse. Instead, Colla portrays everything through the eyes of Khafaji, a protagonist who mercifully seems every bit as much at a loss for understanding the world he lives in as the reader. Colla's Baghdad is a vivid, complicated place fraught with danger for anyone trying to protect a future for the people and ideals they love.

I did enjoy Baghdad Central quite a bit, but those who say it's Grade A fiction are sorely mistaken.

What carries Elliot Colla's work is his intense study coupled with gripping prose. The number of subtle details he uses to enliven a scene is nothing short of masterful. This is very enjoyable noir.

That said, unless you're a noir nut, this book will not ensnare you. I strongly suspect those who do say this book is evenly enjoyable to be liberals who wouldn't dare say anything negative about a text with the word "Iraq" on the front.

The main character rarely registers a humanistic thought. He can come across as a rule-breaking sociopath. Some of his actions don't make sense, which is made much worse from the narrator's lack of explanations. The man's actions seem pure, but we're left largely wondering who he is. He is hard to empathize with.

The plot structure also came across as poorly paced. The last 40 pages seem as if they were written in a hurry by a writer who just wanted to be done with his project. More intense editing could have surely cured this.

That is what is so frustrating about Baghdad Central: There is so much untapped potential here. When Elliot Colla really gets his Middle Eastern noir going, it purrs. Without the necessary consistency, however, his efforts instead falter.

One of the most touching tales ever told and I really appreciate the author Elliot Colla for writing such a sensitive and bold topic which has woven into a story of a very crucial and sensitive time when Iraq 🇮🇶 was under American 🇺🇸 occupation. A real story of an Inspector of police in Baghdad named Muhsin Khadar Al Khafaji whose wife has passed away with cancer,has two daughters Mrouj ( suffering from renal failure) and Sawsan, the elder daughter who has radical views who is supposedly kidnapped. The inspector is falsely implicated and the power struggle between the Americans and a corrupt British official named Frank Temple and how some allies have mismanaged situations then during that period of crisis makes interesting reading.Going back in time, the occupations by America in Vietnam 🇻🇳 later in Afghanistan 🇦🇫 then Iraq 🇮🇶 in which there are umpteen untold stories in which, those responsible for the atrocities, cruelties for which they are accountable and answerable and they justified most of what they have done as no one has any right to go and occupy any country according to their will and pleasure justifying their atrocities and these decisions taken by a handful for their own selfish and self centred reasons and how history judges them decades later is both disturbing and distressing ! Some things don’t change with time and history repeats itself !
“ The fault dear Brutus lies not in our stars but in ourselves that we are such underlings.” ( Julius Caesar to Brutus in William Shakespeare’s, Julius Caesar ) After reading this book I am also reminded of the preface of Victor Hugo’s book and I quote :

So long as there shall exist, by virtue of law and custom, decrees of damnation pronounced by society, artificially creating hells amid the civilization of earth, and adding the element of human fate to divine destiny; so long as the three great problems of the century—the degradation of man through pauperism, the corruption of woman through hunger, the crippling of children through lack of light—are unsolved; so long as social asphyxia is possible in any part of the world;—in other words, and with a still wider significance, so long as ignorance and poverty exist on earth, books of the nature of Les Misérables cannot fail to be of use.
- Preface to Les Meserables
HAUTEVILLE HOUSE, 1862.

Dr. Javed Rasheed

العراق ما بعد الغزو بعيون أمريكية .. تبدأ أحداث الرواية في نهاية عام 2003 و بالتحديد شهر نوفمبر ، نتعرف على محقق بغداد محسن خفاجي الشرطي العراقي المتخصص بفحص الملفات و التقارير ، و الذي يعيش الآن حياة الفوضى كما تعيشها بلاده ، و في محاولته لمساعدة أخو زوجته في العثور على ابنته سوسن الشابة الجامعية التي اختفت منذ حوالي العشرة أيام ، يعتقل من جانب القوات الأمريكية بالخطأ لتشابه اسمه مع اسم أحد المطلوبين من أعمدة النظام السابق ، ليكون هذا الأمر نقطة التحول في حياة محسن من عاطل لمحقق من جديد يتولى قضية البحث عن عدد من المترجمات العراقيات الذين يستعين بهم الجيش الأمريكي لتخطى حاجز اللغة في التعامل مع الأمور ببغداد .. فما حقيقة قضايا الاختفاء ؟ و هل سينجح محسن في حل القضية ؟

تأخدنا الرواية لشوارع العراق و ضواحيها في تلك الفترة ، انتشار الفوضى ، ضياع الوطن ، محتل لديه دائما المبرر و الحجة لما يفعل ، و شعب تخبط ما بين حاكم لم يحسن التقدير و مقاومة اتخذت من كل الوسائل سبيلًا لتحرير الوطن .. فهل ما كان غزوًا أم تحرير ؟ و هل العنف هو السبيل الوحيد للمقاومة ؟

تتقاطع المشاهد بالرواية بين ماضي محسن خفاجي و عائلته و بين حاضره ، مع التركيز على الحاضر بشكل أكبر ، تستعرض الرواية وجهات النظر المختلفة ما بين الأمريكي و العراقي ، أبناء الوطن العائدين من المنفى ، و سكاني العراقي ذوي الجنسيات الأخرى ، و إن ركزت بشكل أكبر على محسن و دائرته القريبة إلا أنها لم تنجح في إظهار البعد النفسي لشخصيات العمل بصورة أعمق ، كما كانت الترجمة رغم جودتها صعبة لإعتماد المترجم على استخدام العامية العراقية في الحوار بين شخصيات العمل مما احتاج جهد أكبر لفهم الأحداث .
امتاز العمل بعرض الكثير من المقاطع الشعرية لعدد من شعراء العراق و العرب و كأن الشعر جزء أساسي في تركيبة المواطن العراقي ، كما جاءت الكثير من مشاهد العمل بتصوير سينمائي و كانك تراها خصوصًا مشاهد المداهمات ، و جاءت النهاية مناسبة لتسلسل أحداث الرواية .

عمل مختلف عرض الأمور بشكل أقل عمقًا من توقعي و إن نقل صورة لأيام صعبة عاشها العراق و أهله.

#قراءات_٢٠٢٤
#قراءات_وترشيحات #كتب_في_كتب
#روايات_عربية #روايات_مترجمة
#محقق_بغداد

لم تنتشر الكتابة الروائية في العراق خلال القرن العشرين؛ حيث لم تكسر الروايات العراقية منذ عشرينيات القرن المنصرم وحتى 2003 – عام سقوط بغداد – حاجز الثمانين عنواناً !
وما أن جاءت لحظة إسقاط نظام صدام حسين وتمثاله عصر التاسع من إبريل / نيسان في ذلك العام، حتى بدأ العراقيون في الثأر من حقبة مظلمة في تاريخهم الحديث، وأخذوا يبدعون في هذا المنحى بأساليب وأشكال مختلفة.
فالثأر بالسلب والنهب لم يشفي الغليل في الغالب.. والثأر بالاقتتال المذهبي والطائفي لم يستمر طويلاً لأسباب عديدة.
وحدها الكتابة الروائية من استمرت متدفقة دون توقف!
أكثر من 700 رواية كتبها عراقيون وعراقيات، من داخل البلاد أو من شتات الاغتراب. كانت جميعها عنواناً عريضاً يشي بأنهم يرومون الثأر أيضاً؛ ولكن بطريقتهم الخاصة!
ولأن الشعر في العراق هو الغالب بعد أقدار الخالق؛ لم تستطع الرواية العراقية الحديثة أن تنافس القصائد الشعرية العراقية، الفصحى منها أو العامية. وحدها بعض النصوص الروائية من اقتحمت عالم الرواية العربية بامتياز، وإن ظلت ضمن ما نستطيع تسميته بالإبداعات الفردية.
ورغم تلك المئات السبع من الروايات العراقية خلال العقدين الماضيين؛ إلا أن غالبيتها العظمى الساحقة لم تتناول الأبعاد الاجتماعية المعقدة التي رافقت تلك الفترة الحرجة من تاريخ العراق، قبيل سقوط صنم الديكتاتور وما تلاه.
حتى جاء ذلك الأطلسي إليوت كولا من بلاد العم سام التي أسقطت نظام صدام وتمثاله أيضاً، ونظم روايته محقق بغداد كما ينظم عتاة الشعراء في العراق قصائدهم! ونجح – أيما نجاح – في إحداث المصالحة الوطنية الوحيدة التي أبصرت النور في بلاد ما بين النهرين، حينما استخدم عصاه السحرية - أو قلمه الأكاديمي الجاد – في التوفيق ما بين الشعر والرواية في عمل أدبي واحد يحمل اسماً عراقياً بامتياز!
ويحه من كاتب!
مع كل صفحة من هذه الرواية تنتابني مشاعر مختلطة! إعجاب بموهبة الكاتب في صنع منحوتة سومرية، لا مجرد تقديم نص أدبي مميز!
كيف استطاع إليوت كولا أن يضع يده على جراحات خفية في روح الإنسان العراقي، لا يعلمها سوى أبناء تلك البقعة التي يتميز شعبها بالباطنية؟! فهم يتحدثون كثيراً؛ ولكنهم لا يقولون شيئاً للغريب!
إن رام أحدنا وصف ما خلفته جحافل المارينز وحلفاؤهم في العراق عام 2003، فلن نجد وصفاً أدق من أنه يوم قيامة مصغر اجتاح وادي الرافدين!
وإن أراد واحدنا أن يقتحم يوم القيامة العراقي ذاك؛ فها هي رحلة إليوت كولا في روايته محقق بغداد، الرحلة / الفرصة التي سيكتشف معها القارئ العربي روعة نص استثنائي، وتفوق صاحبه في وصف ما جرى وحدث هناك، وكأنه يشاهد فيلماً سينمائياً يخطف القلوب ويأسر الأبصار!
كم أحمل لهذا النص من الإطراء! ولكني سأكتفي بوصفه العمل الأفضل الذي ألقى الضوء بأمانة وإتقان على الشهور الأولى لعراق ما بعد صدام.
إن رحلة القارئ العربي مع هذه الرواية ستكون حافلة بكل ما هو مذهل، فهي – بلا شك – جوهرة ثمينة أهدتها لنا المحروسة في وقت مثالي. فما أحوج مكتبتنا العربية لمثل هذا العنوان الجذاب.. محقق بغداد.
ولم نكن لنتمكن من الوصول إلى هذه المرحلة المتقدمة من نشوة القراءة والمطالعة لهذه الرواية، دونما ذلك المترجم الذكي اللامع، محمود علي، الشاب الموهوب الذي نجح في العبور بالنص من لغته الأم إلى العربية بمهارة وخفة وإتقان.
أيها القارئ العربي.. أنت على موعد مع تلاطم موجات مستمرة من الانبهار والدهشة، تصدم مخيلتك كلما انطلقت مع صفحات هذا النص البديع.. محقق بغداد!

This is an extraordinary book about Iraq early in the American invasion. The narrator is a flawed man - a father, brother and brother-in-law, uncle, widower, policeman, and a potential collaborator with the occupation authorities. We follow him as he tries to help family members, evade those who want to do evil to him (on many sides of the many equations), take care of his only surviving child - and stay alive (all very difficult). The difficulties are spelled out dramatically and always maintain suspense and interest. Khafaji and his difficulties seem very real, as does his portrayal of Baghdad under occupation. No easy answers. Highly recommend.

This is a brave book charting one Iraqi's attempt to appease the CPA while not appearing to be a collaborator to the patriots opposing the invaders.

http://opionator.wordpress.com/2013/1...

Read the full review here

I’d read 1 book based in Iraq before Baghdad Central, and quite a few based in the Middle East. I have to say, this story would have been perfectly believable as a non-fiction if Khafaji, a retired policeman, didn’t find himself in the middle of all the action. And even then, I wasn’t absolutely certain.

The book follows Khafaji’s life as it is turned upside down. From quiet days spent with his daughter in their apartment to those, when his daughter gets admitted in the hospital with Khafaji working for the very Americans he had not desire to work for. It takes us through his trauma of being thrust in the middle of a job he doesn’t care for, in the middle of investigations where he discovers things he doesn’t want to. I connected perfectly with Khafaji through his confused state through the webs of lies woven around him. I pitied him when he found his dead niece while investigating a case. I felt as curious as him, when he discovered that the interpreters working for the Americans were something more.

There’s a lot of poetry in Baghdad Central, which unfortunately I didn’t connect to since I don’t read a lot of it, but a poetry and ghazal enthusiast would absolutely love it. Khafaji thinks, talks, and breathes poetry. He quotes poetry when he feels happy. When there’s a mishap, he takes solace in it. He feels lost if he can’t remember lines from his favorite Nazik. If Khafaji’s days are like the pages of this book, the binding would be the poetry running through it.

The author’s imagery is very powerful. The details and descriptions of smallest things to set the scene bring the scene to life in front of the eyes.

I like how the author has described the feelings of Iraqis towards American interference in their internal affairs– subtle but present. At several points where an American character proudly proclaims that they’ve come to establish democracy in Iraq, I found myself wondering- But is that what the Iraqis want?

All in all, I really liked the suspense arc this book followed, while also relying on the softer subject of poetry to move it forward. The years of turmoil in Iraq, those preceding his arrest, are very well described.

الأدب الأمريكي الأسوأ في العالم .. حظي المنيل قرأت اتنين أدب أمريكي سوا دي و مكتبة جبل تشار والاتنين أنيل من بعض ...

Baghdad Central was serialised in six parts on British TV, and I thought it was extraordinarily good, so I decided to read this novel, upon which it was based. Ultimately I think the TV production was better than the book, though I enjoyed reading it very much. The scriptwriters had added a lot (which Colla said that he was happy with, and I can see why), but the plot-line was clearer, more definite. Also the cast of interesting supporting characters were more of a presence in the serial, especially Captain Parodi, a strong, authoritative but humane figure, whilst the central character, an Iraqi policeman discharged by the Coalition occupying forces, was a mesmerising performance on the screen.
Nevertheless I enjoyed the book, and one thing that came across strongly in the novel but was virtually absent from the film was the role of poetry as central to Iraqi society, part of its fabric rather than stitched on as a decorative ornament. The author teaches Arabic literature in an American university, and obviously knows his stuff, though the poems were modern rather than the classical poetry more prevalent in Iran.
The description of the civilisation and culture being destroyed before our eyes comes across in both film and book with great authenticity. An unusual setting, and good to see it through Iraqi rather than Western eyes.

It's Raymond Chandler in Baghdad. Many of your favorite police procedural/detective noir tropes are here. Complicated personal life. Seductive dame who may be dodgy. Bottles of whiskey (Jack Daniels). A plot that always leaves you feeling a bit dizzy and confused, but in a way that still makes you want to keep reading.

It's also a bitter taste of the surreal hellscape the US invasion caused for the average Iraqi, as well as the nerve-racking hellworld of Ba'athist Iraq. While some may find the book a tad on the inaccessible side if they don't know much about the Middle East, others may find the Arabic words and extensive translations of Iraqi poetry add a lush verisimilitude that allows the reader to feel like he or she is visiting another world. Some of the plot points feel a bit...er, convenient. But not more so than most police procedurals. It would be a good thing if more Americans read this book and understood the reality other people must live with because of the choices we--via our leaders--make.

Baghdad Central was dramatised by Channel 4 at the start of this year, however, I've not yet watched it so came to this book with fresh eyes. I've read a few novels set in Iraq but Baghdad Central is the first I've read featuring an Iraqi main protagonist. It's probably fair to describe Muhsin al-Khafaji as somewhat of an anti-hero - this noir thriller excels at exploring the ambiguity of life in the country in 2003 and Khafaji himself isn't exempt from that.
He is initially captured by American forces and tortured but it quickly transpires that he has been confused with another man who bears his name. It's not the first time he has experienced this misunderstanding but while a previous occasion merely provided him with an amusing, if rather expensive, anecdote, Khafaji's previous role as a mid-level police officer means the occupying forces quickly seize upon him as a tool to help rebuild the Iraqi Police Service. He doesn't exactly welcome his new role but uses the opportunity to insist upon medical care for his daughter, Mrouj who is one of many Iraqi citizens whose health has suffered due to the years of US-led sanctions inflicted on the country.
If Khafaji's past as a man who learned how to successfully dissimulate his true feelings during his years working under the Ba'ath regime suggests his decisions come less from principles than from a desire to protect himself and his family - particularly his daughter - the scenes between him and Mrouj and his memories of his wife do ensure he is a sympathetic character throughout the book. His family ties also become significant when he is asked to investigate the possible disappearance of young interpreters and discovers a link with his missing niece. However, although this mystery leads to some disturbing revelations, it's not the most memorable aspect of this meandering thriller.
It's the sense of place which perhaps has the biggest immediate impact, with the brutality and uncertainty of daily life rendered with a vividness which is almost too unpalatable. Khafaji contends with power cuts and struggles to walk through streets strewn with rubbish but it's the prison scenes which are the most distressing and which serve as a powerful reminder that for all the rhetoric around freeing Iraq from a barbaric regime, the occupying forces were also capable of acts of cruelty. It comes as little surprise that having demonised much of the population of the country, violent interrogations borne from anger and fear should have been commonplace but it's the more insidious acts which are just as notable - the imperialistic renaming of street names being perhaps the most striking example.
Yet despite the ever-present threat of violence and the overwhelming impression of the callous fragility of life here, Baghdad Central is also a bittersweet reminder that this is a country whose identity is framed by poetry and the frequent references to poems is both a fascinating acknowledgment of the almost universal appreciation of this important body of work and an unusual and compelling way of allowing Khafaji to attempt to make sense of his experiences.
Baghdad Central is a powerfully honest, uncompromising thriller which never shirks from examining the morally opaque realities of re-shaping the country after the war but which never allows readers to forget its rich cultural heritage. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

"The one thing that is braver each day than I is my sense of self-preservation It moves not, and stands not, unless it is driven by something” – Elliott Colla (2014)

Baghdad Central is a noir debut novel set in Baghdad in September 2003. The US occupation of Iraq is a swamp of incompetence and self-delusion.

The CPA has disbanded the Iraqi army and police as a consequence of its paranoid policy of de-Ba’athification of Iraqi society. Tales of hubris and reality-denial abound, culminating in Washington hailing the mess a glorious “mission accomplished.”

Inspector Muhsin al-Khafaji is a mid-level Iraqi cop who deserted his post back in April. Khafaji has lived long enough in pre- and post-Saddam Iraq to know that clinging on to anything but poetry and his daughter, Mrouj, is asking for trouble. Nabbed by the Americans and imprisoned in Abu Ghraib, Khafaji is offered one way out—work for the CPA to rebuild the Iraqi Police Services. But it’s only after United States forces take Mrouj that he figures out a way to make his collaboration palatable, and even rewarding.

Soon, he is investigating the disappearance of young women translators working for the US Army. The bloody trail leads Khafaji through battles, bars, and brothels then finally back to the Green Zone, where it all began.

This was story in itself is powerful and authentic and it leads you on a vivid and dark journey through the trials and tribulations of the Iraq in war time. It was very clearly detailed and explained and it certainly left a mark in me. It struck me how each character tried extremely hard to remain human in such extreme circumstances.

The characters themselves have been so well developed. Each one with their own agenda and are driven by their own complexities and goals. There were no stereotypes every single character was accurate and how you imagine them to be. If you want a lesson in a character driven story with fantastic character development then the author is your go to for guidance. I am very surprised he has not written more novels.

The landscape and backdrop to the story was beautifully described. And it reveals to you the harrowing and gruesome details of the aftermaths of a country hell bent on destroying the other. Truly tragic and terrifying. The author has been very brave to get this on paper. The writing is rich and powerful and it left me reeling at times that is for certain. The explanation of the American Occupation and how oppressive and invasive it was to the local peace loving people was brilliantly told.

I have to say I have not found another book like this. It is so thoughtful and clever. The writer has clearly spent time studying a culture different to their own and has lovingly embraced it. From the minor details of how tea would be secretly made when they should be fasting to how much they dearly love their families. I also admire how this was done by an American and I would say this is Iraqui fiction without doubt.

I highly recommend this story to you. I also hope the author writes more or is at least planning to.

Cheers

Ben

ChopperCrimeBooks

الرواية دي عاملة بالظبط زي ما تبقي فرد مصري ينتمي للطبقة المتوسطة وتروح تتسحر في واحد من المطاعم الفخمة بتاعة التجمع الخامس اللي بقالنا سنتين تقريبا في رمضان بيتنشر صورة الفاتورة الخزعبلية بتاعتهم ، اللي بيبيعوا بيض مدحرج وبيبيعوا طبق الفول ب٦٥ جنيه وقزازة المياه ب٢٥ جنيه بدل ٥ والحاجة الساقعة ب٣٠ بدل ٥ برضه وطبق البطاطس ب٤٠ جنيه وطبق البيض ب٩٠ جنيه.
ونقول يارب بس الأسعار دي تفضل للطبقات الغنيا بس مش لكله

■ صاحب المطعم أو الكافيه هنا مش غشيم ، هو عارف هو فاتح فين ومين الفئة المستهدفة في المكان ، ده مكان مش معمول عشان اللي زيك وده منتج مش موجه ليك أصلا ، فلما يبقي ده مش مكانك يفضل ماتروحش ، اللهم إلا لو عندهم اللي مش موجود في أي حتة تانية حواليك.
فلو روحت ومعجبكش متاكلش وتمشي وانت ساكت ، ببساطة صور الشيك وحطه علي الفيسبوك لزوم السخرية ولزوم تحذير أي حد من الفئة المتوسطة انه ميروحش هناك.

■ نرجع للرواية
الواحد حرفيا مابيصدق يلاقي حاجة عن غزو العراق وسقوط بغداد في ال٢٠٠٣م واللي حصل وقتها وقبلها وبعدها ولسه بيحصل لحد دلوقتي واللي واضح انه مكنش مهم ساعتها ولا بعد سنين كتير لأدباء العرب عموما عشان تلاقي قائمة روايات بتحكي الموضوع من أكتر من جانب وبأكتر من طريقة زي روايات الأندلس مثلا أو حتي زي يناير ٢٠١١ اللي لو مكتبوش عنها مباشرة فكتير اتمسّحوا فيها

■ أحداث الرواية عن فرد متقاعد في الشرطة العراقية بيلاقي نفسه مجبر يتعامل مع الأمريكان ، وأثناء بحثه في اختفاء واحدة جارته بنشوف ظروف الناس اللي اضطرتهم ظروفهم يتعاملوا مع قوات الاحتلال وكونهم هدف للمقاومة ، ورغم انه الفكرة جيدة إلا إنها اتناقشت بكتير من السطحية المصحوبة ببعض الملل
■ المؤلف عموما بيترجم روايات عربي للغة الانجليزية ، والرواية قطعا موجهة للجمهور الغربي اللي بيحب يتفرج علي أفلام معاناة الجندي الأمريكي وهو بينشر الديمقراطية الأمريكية ولو علي حساب أرواح البشر ، أنا أول مرة أسمع عنه الصراحة ، وهو يا حد متمكن قوي يا المترجم بيترجم علي هواه يا في حاجة غلط ، قرامطة ايه اللي كانوا أول مسلمين بأيدولوجية مناهضة للأمبريالية العالمية وعباسيين مين اللي سقطوا وهما بيحاولوا يخمدوا حركة شعبية ديمقراطية ، وايه شعر نازك الملائكة المنتشر بقوة ده ، وإيه بطل القصة ده كمان اللي مش عايز يصوم رمضان عشان ميبقاش صام لأنه كتاب أو شيخ أمره بكده ورمضان بالنسباله معاناة مع الشاي والسجاير

■ ولو سيبنا المؤلف اللي بيترجم من عربي لانجليزي فممكن نمسك في المترجم اللي ترجمله الرواية ، أنا مفهمش في فنون الترجمة بس معرفش مين اداله حق يترجم بالعامية العراقية ، هي مكنتش تقيلة لانه الكلام شارح نفسه بس لما الكلام كان فيه واحد مصري اجتهد وكتب حواره بالعامية المصرية ، فيعني حضرتك دي رواية مش مسلسل ولا فيلم عشان تغير اللهجة ، يكفيك الفصحي هتكون ابلغ من اي لهجة وتوصل لاي حد بيتكلم عربي عادي

■ القراءة الرابعة والأخيرة علي أبجد
تجربة مكنتش ممتعة خالصة بالنسبالي
وتذكرة ليا إني أجتهد في الرواية اللي كتبت فكرتها ومخططاتها وبقالي سنين عمال أزود في أفكار وأحداث وخطوط بس مبكتبش 😁😁😁

الإثنين

Baghdad, September 2003 and the city, and Iraq itself, is in a mess. The US occupation is incompetent and in the grip of self-delusion, and having abolished the Iraqi army, facing a growing insurgency. Inspector Muhsin al-Khafaji is a mid-level police officer who deserted his post after the invasion. After he’s picked up by US forces who mistake him for a wanted Baathist, the coalition authorities learn of his real identity and his skill with archives and data analysis.

On that basis, he’s hired to help recruit a new police force, his task to go through the personnel files of the old Iraqi police forces and decide who can be trusted by the Americans and might be willing to work for them. In return, his daughter who has a kidney condition, is offered treatment. While going about his tasks, al-Khafaji learns that a number of female interpreters have gone missing, including his niece. This leads him to investigate and discover a disturbing plot.

I really wanted to like this book, having heard so much about it and seen that there was a highly regarded television adaptation (which I’m yet to see). And there is much to like about this novel, but equally there’s much to be infuriated by, though this could just be my perspective.

Where this novel is strongest is in the general atmosphere it portrays and how it perfectly encapsulates the utter ludicrousness of the occupation. I've never been to Iraq, but during the war I worked in current affairs journalism. While I never went to Iraq myself, I knew, and spoke with, many journalists who did. Everything I’ve been told leads me to believe that this novel is spot on, and that the situation was tragically farcical.

But this is a meandering novel and the plot never really goes anywhere. Even the main story of the female interpreters who go missing is vague and the author’s heart doesn’t really appear to be in telling it. This is a pity, because at heart the plot had strong potential. The protagonist loves poetry, and poems and poetry appear throughout the text, but to me this just further slowed things down.

All in all, this is a good novel. Inspector Muhsin al-Khafaji is an interesting character, as are many of the supporting cast, particularly some of the clueless Americans. The portrayal of Baghdad and the occupation is excellent. But the plot really should have been tighter.

Say ‘Baghdad Central’ and people will immediately begin to talk about the highly acclaimed television series, loosely based on Elliott Colla’s far better novel of the same name. Colla’s book is an intelligent, tightly plotted piece of writing, set in post-war Iraq and written from the viewpoint of the Iraqis.

Colla, an associate professor of Arabic and Islamic studies at Georgetown University, sets his tale in post-Saddam Hussein Baghdad, where the US-dominated Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) looms among the chaos. With the military and law enforcement agencies disbanded by the CPA, protagonist Muhsin Khadr al-Khafaji finds himself, through a series of misunderstandings, working for the Americans, building up the new police force. As part of his deal with them, he negotiates treatment for his ailing daughter, access to adequate medical care limited in the recovering country. Khafaji’s main focus, however, is on finding his missing niece and other Iraqi girls, translators, who have also disappeared.

An atmospheric noir, Baghdad Central is also so much more, Colla showing us a post-invasion Iraq, not from a Western viewpoint, as is the norm, but from that of the locals themselves, whose roles continually shift according to who’s viewing them, Khafaji himself father, investigator, collaborator, survivor.

The book is infused with poetry, hardly surprising as Arabic literature is Colla’s speciality, and informed by Iraqi traditions, beliefs, language and culture. More than that, it’s an empathetic look at a country in chaos, desperately trying to recover its footing, of a people trying to survive after seeing their country devastated not just by a dictatorship, but by war. It’s detailed, authentic and moving. We can’t recommend it enough.

See: https://www.theliteraryshed.co.uk/rea...

This review was published as part of the publisher virtual book tour, celebrating backlist crime titles. All opinions are our own. All rights reserved.

Baghad Central is widely known as a TV series and it was a really great series, I believe. At this point I need to confess I missed it, although I did want to watch it, so I can only go off what chatter I have heard or seen about that particular version. I wanted to do the tour as I always usually find the book is the best version.
Baghdad Central is set in post-war Iraq and is told through the eyes of the Iraqis. At this time the majorly US Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) is looming within the chaos created. Muhsin Khadr al-khafaji ends up working for the Americans to create a new Police Force after the CPA disbanded military and law enforcement agencies. He made sure to negotiate treatment for his ill daughter, with access to medical treatment barely there in Iraq at that time this was an important requirement for him. With his daughter's needs covered his focus is mainly on trying to find his missing niece and other missing female Iraqi translators.
This is a very different book for me, and I really got immersed in this story.coming from the viewpoints of the locals of the Iraqi side instead of the Western view. Using this view, It opened my eyes as such, even the fact that Khafaji enjoyed poetry. Why should this surprise me? I really don't know,maybe because I see Iraq and the people there as different. Well, this book showed me people are people and I am grateful for my education.
I am glad that people are writing books from the Iraqi view now. The only things we usually see are from the US or British side and that in a way dehumanises people. This story humanised Iraqis for me. It also showed me what an absolute havoc was caused during this time and how hard it was for them to recover. A most important story for people to read and I shall be trying to find the series to watch also.
Thank you to Random Things Tours and Bitter Lemon Press for my copy of this eye opening book for my review today.

This book was heavy going to read, not because of the writing or plot, but because it dealt with the turmoil of a country at war with an occupying force and all the mess and human disaster that occurs. Elliott manages to convey all this with aplomb as the narrative is so complex, with twists and turns right to the end, the feeling of fear and claustrophobia, and the unknown presence of the future!

Khafaji is the main character who used to be a serving police officer before the Americans invaded Iraq. He is taken away one night by two shadowy Americans and after a bit of torture he is told he will be helping to build the new Iraqi police force. In return his daughter would be given the medical attention she so desperately requires. No choice really. The remaining action is noir genre at its finest. It’s messy, it has a damaged protagonist, a mystery with a dirty feeling. But then what doesn’t feel dirty in a war?! Sorry that might be my pacifism showing. But what is clear is that the author doesn’t shy from the affects of the conflict.

I can’t say I liked Khafaji but I don’t think that matters. I loved the relationship between him and his daughter though and their shared love of poetry. I do love poetry from this area, especially that of Rumi and the break from the heavy action by beautiful turns of phrase gave the book an amazing balance between the light and dark.

I am honestly glad that there is literature beginning to come forth that does deal with this area and timeframe but from an Iraqi perspective. It is desperately needed as normally it’s the winner of a conflict which dominates the narrative. I urge you to read it and then watch the show which is based on this novel.

📝الكتاب: محقق بغداد.
🕵️الكاتب:اليوت كولا.
👀عدد الصفحات:383
🎬النوع:رواية بوليسيه. سياسيه
🚦التقييم:🌟🌟🌟
"إحنا فلسطينيين يعني خبرة في التعامل مع الطرد"💡
منذ بدايات سطور الروايةكان رد نضال المتأهب للرحيل هربا من ويلات الحرب على نسيبه خفاجي
كأنه معاهدة انصهار جعلتني أقرأها بمشاعيري أكثر من عقلي..انا الفلسطينيه من قلب الألم والحروب وويلات التدخلات الاجنبيه والأمريكية خاصه وصفقات بيع الارض والشعب ... نشأت على دعم العراقيين و حكومتهم ؛للقضيه الفلسطينيه ..انها ليست حرب عادية ..حرب العراق التي عاصرتها لحظة ب لحظة ..مشاعر الحب والألفة الكبيرة التي احملها لهذا الشعب العظيم.والبلد العريقة بلد دجلة والفرات والحضارات . ومطربي المفضل القيصر...شعب العنفوان والأنفه.....

؟دَمعٌ لِبَغداد دَمعٌ بالمَلايين..
مَن لي بِبَغداد أبكيها وتَبكيني؟
مَن لي ببغداد روحي بَعدَها يَبِسَتْ..
وَصَوَّحَتْ بَعدَها أبْهى سَناديني
عُدْ بي إلَيها.. فَقيرٌ بَعدَهـا وَجَعـي .. فَقيرَة ٌأحرُفي، خُرْسٌ دَواويني قد عَرَّشَ الصَّمتُ في بابي وَنافِذَتي .. وَعَشَّشَ الحُزنُ حتى في رَوازيني والشِّعرُ بغداد، والأوجاعُ أجمَعُها ..
فانظُرْ بأيِّ سِهام ِالمَوتِ تَرميني."📚

روايه تحكي عن الحرب التي بدأت بكذبة وآلت الى فوضى...ارقام مرعبة عن ضحايا وتهجير ودمار.
اكثر مااستوقفني وانا اقرأ عن ارقام الضحايا في الحرب المشؤومه ... بشاعه رد الجنرال تومي فرانكس، قائد حملة الغزو على بغداد ل الصحفيين بشأن ضحايا الحرب : " نحن لا نعد الجثث".🧐لعل أمريكا تعلمت فن عد الجثث لاحقاً ☠️
كيف لأهوال الحروب ان تكتب بين سطور ..تختزلها اقلام جافة غمست قصصها ب دم ابناءها... كيف للجلاد ان يحكي بلغة المتعاطف المتفهم ....
.

"حتى هؤلاء الذين ابقوا جفونهم مطبقة رأوا كل شيء"💡

رواية تحكي حرب العدوان على العراق. بطلها ضابط الشرطة العراقي في النظام السابق محسن الخفاجي الذي فقد كل ما يملك زوجته ووظيفته إلى أن أصبحت حياته صراعاً يومياً للبقاء وحماية ابنته المريضة مروج.
"لانستطيع تغيير الماضي..لكن بين الحين والآخر تتاح لنا فرصة أن نقرر أي أجزائه يهم وأيهما لا يهم."💡

يجد خفاجي نفسه مقحماً في العمل لصالح العدو بعد القاء القبض عليه وزجه في السجن بين سجناء من جنسيات مختلفه جاؤوا للمشاركه في الدفاع عن العراق في حربها 🥺.وكانت هذه الصفحات هي الأصعب في الرواية☠️...ليتبين لاحقاً انه ليس الشخص المنشود .

"قليلون منايكونون في المكان والتوقيت المناسبين لإحداث تأثير تاريخي مشابه لما ستفعله،"...🧐💡

ثم يفرج عنه بعد الاتفاق بالاستفادة من خبراته في التحقيق...ثم تتوالى الأحداث البوليسية تباعاً ..في اكتشافه حقيقه عمل المترجمات وتقوده الاحداث ليعرف علاقه سوسن بهم وهي ابنه اخته التي كان يبحث عنها وارتباطهامع استاذة الجامعه زبيدة وعلاقتها ب سيترون.

أثقلتهُ السنابِلُ بالأرَجِ النَّشْوانْ,

بصدًى شاعريّ غريبْ

من هُتافاتِ ضفدعةٍ في الدجى النعسان

يملأُ الليلَ والغدْرانْ

صوتُها المتراخي الرتيبْ
برع أليوت كولا بالوقوف بين العالمين. فهو الأميركي الذي درس اللغة العربية وترجم عشرات الأعمال من العربية إلى الانكليزية، وهو أستاذ الأدب العربي في جامعة جورج تاون، وحينما قرر كتابة روايته الأولى، اختار أن تكون بوليسية حسب توصيفه. كما اختار أيضاً أن يكون بطل الرواية من النسيج العراقي وليس أميركياً، وليس أي عراقي، بل ضابط شرطة سابق..وقام بتوظيف لغه شعرية جميله كتب فيها اجمل الأبيات التي تشكل قلب ذائقة العراقيين خاصه. العرب عامه بين بدر شاكر سياب ونازك الملائكه وغيرهم . كانت لعبة اكمال الابيات الشعرية بين خفاجي وابنته مروج تسليتهم المشرقة بين سطور الألم والخيانه والدم.
الروايه أنتجت ك مسلسل بريطاني اسمه Baghdad Central.
الروايه جيده رغم انها لم تفي الواقع العراقي حقه ولم تصف الجوانب المهمه والحقيقيه لمأساة شعب عانى ومازال يعاني. بعد ماتركوه من ادعوا تخليصه من الديكتاتوريه والظلم وتعليمه الديمقراطيه' في براثن الطائفية غارقا في ويلاته بعد ان استنزفته إقتصاديا ولوجستيا ودمرت بناه التحتية وموارده. واختتمها بمشهد العثور على صدام حسين في الحفرة المشؤؤمه ووصفه للحيته وهيئت ليعيد ل ذاكرتي ذلك المشهد المؤلم وماتبعه من إعدامه في اول ايام العيد..
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"ليست البطولة دائما في المهاجمة، بل قد تكون كذلك في الصبر والثبات، وليست الشجاعة دائماً في محاربة العدو الظاهري فحسب، بل إنما هي أيضا – وعلى الأخص – محاربة العدو الباطني أي أن يحارب المرء في نفسه اليأس والفتور وحب الراحه."ميشيل عفلق 💡
وشكراً سجى محمود 🦋

Wow. In all honesty, when I first started reading this book I wasn’t sure that I was going to enjoy it as it’s so different to what I normally read. I was wrong! Although it took me a while to get to grips with the plot and storyline, when I did, I couldn’t put it down.

This story is described as a ‘noir mystery novel’ and is set in Baghdad, circa September 2003, in the early stages of the American invasion. Main character Khafaji is a troubled man - a widower and the sole carer for his remaining child Mrouj - and we follow his story as he is wrongly seized by the CPA and later blackmailed into collaborating with them to recreate a civilian police force...

I felt truly enlightened all the way through this book - although I have a vague knowledge of Iraq at the time of the American invasion from history lessons etc, Elliot Colla painted a very descriptive and realistic picture of what I imagine life was actually like during that period. The story is only set over a few days (with occasional flashbacks) and the author has struck the perfect balance of providing enough detail yet not swamping the reader with multiple plot lines. I felt a lot of empathy toward Khafaji’s character - the hardships he is facing, at a loss to understanding the world he lives in while trying to protect his daughter. A very compelling read.

أفسدتني الأحكام المسبقة إلى أن أعتقدت أن هذه الرواية مجرد مجموعة أحداث بوليسية أمريكية تقليدية، تجعل منه عمل مناسب للإنتاج التلفزيوني، لكنني دُهشت بالأدب الرائع وكأن المترجم قد خلق رواية أخرى من ذات الرواية.
أرى أن المؤلف كان من المهتمين بالأدب العربي وأجد ذلك فعلًا في اختياراته للشعر، ذاك الشعر المألوف لدى كل الأخيلة العراقية والمتداولة بينهم كما الأحاديث، وهذا ما خلق سطح مثالي جدًا بأن يجعل من شخصيات الرواية تستطعم الروعة المتمثلة في مدى جعل الشعر بيئة تعبير عن العواطف (وهي كذلك) لكن بجعلها كالحديث اليومي، مجرد ميزة إضافية ومَلَكة الحس المرهف في إيجاد المعنى خلف كل قدر، ووراء كل قضية. إمكانية الشعر بأن يجعل العالم أفضل، أستطيع أن أقول وجدتها هنا، ونازك تلازم خفاجي مكونةً عالمًا يطبطب به على جروح نفسه حتى وإن كان ينسى أحيانًا؛ باعتراضات الصداع المؤلمة، القوافي وبحور الشعر. صاحب المؤلف من أعلام العراق كفاية لأن تجعله مؤهلًا بأن يكتب عن شخصية عراقية قاست الحرب في عزها، وامتلاك الشكل الملائم للقضية في تصوير التدخل الأمريكي المسمى حزب الائتلاف المؤقت، وتصويره على شكل ذلك الملاك المنقذ وهو بكل المقاييس مجرد سلطة ثانية تحكم المزاج العراقي في صورة سَمحة وحقيقته التهديد والسحق تحت رحمة السلاح. عجيبة. ترجمة استثنائية لعمل في ذاته مبهر.

Although this book is not always even-handed in its portrayal of all the parties in this conflict, it does portray how inhumane and confusing life in Baghdad must have been. Everyday life included the sporadic availability of doctors, medical facilities, electricity, and water. It was also difficult to know who you could trust and who might turn you over to the rebels or the government. There were bombings and people being murdered or whisked away in the middle of the night to prisons and torture. Mistaken for someone else, the main character is subjected to some of these extreme interrogations before being forced to work for the American military to identify and recruit former Iraqi police officers back into service. This impossible task is abandoned when female "interpreters" start disappearing. As some of their bodies are found, it becomes clear that something bigger is going on, and the main character struggles to solve this mystery and stay alive.

They talk about books extending your experience of existence... making you aware of other lives.
How true.
But sometimes there are books that go even beyond that and change the way you look on life. Sacco's "Palestine" was like that... "Baghdad Central" is also like that. I will never see the world the same way again. This book has changed me.
I know that not everyone will feel the same - perhaps it all comes down to mood, to your state of mind, or the time and place, but this book did it for me.
I can never look at what happened in Iraq after the Second Gulf War the same way again.
History is full of such tragedies and the sense of emptiness, or hopelessness... of being driven by forces you have no control over. Those of us who have been lucky need to experience such things to truly understand our brethren in time.

I found this novel utterly engrossing. Set in 2003 after the American invasion of Iraq its "hero" Muhsin al-Khafaji is a policeman with a dead wife, an executed son, a sick daughter and a missing niece. He ends up working for the Americans to help recreate a civilian police force. In this book there are scences in Abu Ghraib, in the Green Zone, in areas taken over by militias. It's rich in description but equally rich in poetry because the rhythms and patterns of poetry is at the heart of al-Khafaji's work as policemen, relationship with his family and his own humanity. A fascinating noir novel.

Kadim Irak kültürü ile Irak'ın işgal edildiği kaotik dönemin içiçe anlatıldığı polisiye bir roman. Kitapta başta Nazik el-Melaike'nin şiirleri olmak üzere çok sayıda klasik şairin şiirleri ve Irak halkının şiire olan tutkusu da vurgulanmış.
Savaş ve düzensizlik ortamında hayatın ne kadar zor olabileceği ve Irak'lı kadınların durumunun anlatıldığı bir roman olarak çok güzel bir eser.
Kitabın dili çok akıcı ve çok güzel bir Türkçe kullanılmış.
Kitapta çok sayıda yazım hatası ile karşılaştım. Birkaç yerde Hafaci'nin ismi Kafaci olarak yazılmış. Ayrıca sanki şiirlerin çevirisi pek iyi yapılamamış.

It's a well-written story, a lot of action, and police thriller, I was surprised by the author knowledge of Iraqi culture, which something almost all western writer lack, he also managed to describe that troubled era from Iraqi history perspective almost very accurately, I know because I lived it and hated how western writer fail to do as they tend to romanticize the western characters.

I didn't know about this book until I watch the series on Hulu, and as much as I enjoyed the show, the book does not offer any more content, and I'm sure you will enjoy this book if you only watch the series and be just fine.