I send my sincere thanks to the University of Michigan’s Department of Comparative Literature, which has been Absinthe’s home for the last eight years and whose faculty give generously of their time to provide mentorship to the graduate students who work on the journal. I am also very grateful to the Department of Middle East Studies for its financial contribution toward the production of this issue.

I am indebted to Absinthe’s wonderful team of managing editors, whose careful copyediting and behind-the-scenes planning helped make this issue possible. To Sara Abou Rashed: thank you for the time and effort you put into copyediting the issue’s Arabic script and ensuring the accuracy of its translations. I also thank Julia Schwartz for her helpful comments on a draft of the introduction.

To David Álvarez, Khaled Mattawa, Dunya Mikhail, and Anton Shammas: thank you for recommending possible works to translate for this issue and for helping me get in contact with their authors.

On a personal note, I send my renewed appreciation to three friends who have been of regular assistance to me each time I’ve undertaken an Arabic-to-English translation project: Ali Harb, Aysam Iyrot, and Ammar Owaineh.

To Yopie Prins: thank you so much for encouraging me in my various translation-related pursuits throughout my time as a graduate student at Michigan. This issue of Absinthe would not have materialized without you.

And finally, shukran jazeelan to the translators and authors who contributed their work to Absinthe 28. Engaging with your words has made my job as an editor a true joy.