Khalil Alrez


Khalil Alrez (

Biography

Khalil Alrez was born in 1956 in Raqqa, Syria. He later moved to Aleppo to continue his university studies. In 1980, Alrez earned his Bachelor's degree in Arabic language and literature from the University of Aleppo. Then, he moved to Russia and lived in Saint Petersburg and Moscow from 1984 to 1993 to study theater; he also learned the Russian language while there. He worked in Russia as a translator and radio host. Years later, Khalil returned to Syria and worked as a writer and translator for the Ministry of Culture of Syria. Alrez has published nine novels, including “Al Badal”, “Sulawesi”, “Bl Tasawi”, “Youm Akhar” and others. He has also translated various works from Russian into Arabic, including: “Tale about the lost time by Evgeny Schwartz”, “Selected Russian Short Stories” and “Selected Stories of Anton Chekhov”. Recently, Alrez’s novel “The Russian Quarter” was shortlisted for the International [Prize for Arabic Fiction]. Alrez left Syria to escape the civil war and now lives in Belgium.

Works

Novels

  • Sulawesi, 1994
  • Another Day, 1995
  • Obsessive Air, 1997
  • A White Cloud in the Window of the Grandmother, 1998
  • An Ireland Salmon, 2004
  • Where is Safed, Youssef?, 2008
  • An Equal Measure, 2014
  • Al-Badal, 2017
  • The Russian Quarter, 2019.

Play

  • Two, 1996.

Translations