Saddam Hussein’s novella gets English translation

A novella written by late leader of Iraq, Saddam Hussein set to be translated to the English language for the first time by a UK publisher. The book, which was finished in the lead-up to the 2003 Iraq war is described by publisher, Hesperus as a mix between Game of Thrones and the UK House […]

A novella written by late leader of Iraq, Saddam Hussein set to be translated to the English language for the first time by a UK publisher.
The book, which was finished in the lead-up to the 2003 Iraq war is described by publisher, Hesperus as a mix between Game of Thrones and the UK House of Cards-style fiction.
A spokesman for Hesperus described the book as “a mix between Game of Thrones and the UK House of Cards-style fiction”, and said it was full of political intrigue, but that the publisher would be “keeping the rest secret until Christmas.”
Previously published in other languages with titles including B’egone Devils’ and ‘Get Out, You Damned One’, the novella focuses on a tribe living by the Euphrates river 1,500 years ago which ousts an invading force. In 2005, the New York Times described it as “a forgettable piece of pulp”.
The manuscript was reportedly carried out of Iraq by Saddam’s daughter, Raghad Saddam Hussein in 2003. She announced plans to publish the 186-page novel in Jordan in 2005, before it was quickly banned from sale, resulting in multiple bootleg versions appearing. In 2006, Japanese publisher Tokuma Shoten released it under the title ‘Devil’s Dance’. It was also translated into Turkish. Hesperus has yet to announce what its English title will be.
Hesperus, an independent publisher that releases books that have gone out of print or have yet to find an English translator, will issue the former Iraqi president’s novella in December 2016, to mark the 10th anniversary of his execution.
Hussein was a president of Iraq, until December 30 2006 when he was convicted of charges or crimes against humanity related to the 1982 killing of 148 Iraqi Shi’ites. Hewas sentenced to death by hanging.