Davis was able to transform all the feelings of the Palestinian writer and the contradictions he lived through from the Arabic text to the English edition, without losing the fluidity of the original text I was born there, I was born here, by: Mourid El-Barghouti, Trans: Hamphrey Davis, London: Bloomsbury. 2012. British publishing house, Bloomsbury, has just issued the English edition of the famous Palestinian poet Mourid El-Barghouti's book Wouledt Honak Wouledt Hona (I was born there, I was born here). The book was translated by the renowned Arabic literature translator, Humphrey Davis. Davis was able to carry all the feelings of the writer and his contradictions over from the Arabic text to the English edition, without losing the fluidity of the original text. The book is full of memories, poetic talks and even the coffee rituals of the El-Barghouti; it reflects the life of the Palestinians in the diaspora in the past six decades, and at its core it is a tribute to the people who continue live with dignity though all the difficulties they find in their life. The author starts his book with his trip from Jericho on to the Gaza Strip crossing the Jordanian river to Amman, where his mother lives. In the mid 1960's, he moved to Cairo to study. Before he could return to Gaza, the 1967 war broke out, Israel occupied the Strip and he was prevented from returning home. Mourid Barghouti, 68, Palestinian poet and writer, was born and raised in Ramallah in Palestine. He currently resides in Egypt and has many published poetic works such as: Midnight and Other Poems, A Small Sun, and I saw Ramallah.
