Early Science Fiction in the Arab World

Written sometime between 1268 and 1277 CE, Ibn al-Nafis' Theologus Autodidactus is an often-overlooked treasure in the literary canon of the Middle Ages. It features the first instance of a coming-of-age story, the earliest recorded desert island (or isolation log) story and, perhaps most remarkably, is considered by many the first example of a science fiction story. Copies are fairly easy to find online (try Amazon) and the book is definitely worth a read. As a harrowing theological/philosophical journey, al-Nafis' book is a well-crafted work of art.

Word of the Day: Carious.
Book of the Day: A Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Author of the Day: Jorge Luis Borges, surrealist/magical realist/modernist and possibly the most widely-read man in recorded history.