Elena Sukachova discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Elena Sukachova is a Ukrainian writer and television host living in the United States. She arrived in America on her own with her three children and a dog, without knowing English and with no friends or relatives there.

Several years later, just when life seemed to be settling down, her family lost their home and lived on the streets. A year later, Elena founded her own media company and created two television projects, The Ask and We'll Show You, which air in New York and North Carolina.

Elena wrote Psychology of Speech in 2017, before the full-scale war in Ukraine, but has only now found the strength to return to the book. It is available at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HP6RLJK7

1. Everyday care for animals. I would love more attention to what caring for animals really involves: noticing their needs, discomfort, fear and changes as they age.
2. The lives of immigrants behind the label. People who have never emigrated may not realise what it means to rebuild a life, learn a language and navigate unfamiliar systems while supporting a family.
3. Paying attention to how we eat. We often eat out of habit or convenience without thinking about our choices. I would like more attention to preparing simple, varied meals and making thoughtful eating part of everyday life from childhood.
4. Making time for sunrise and a quiet morning. Going outside, noticing the sky grow lighter and spending a few moments without a phone or rushing.
5. People who help quietly, without cameras or recognition. Someone who translates a document, brings food, offers a ride or helps a newcomer find their feet can make an enormous difference.
6. The freedom to be a beginner at any age. Trying a new skill, learning a sport or starting a different career should not come with an age limit or embarrassment.

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Youssef Rakha discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Youssef Rakha is an Egyptian author working in Arabic and English. He is the author of The Book of the Sultan’s Seal; The Crocodiles; Paulo, which was longlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction and won a Sawiris Cultural Award; and The Dissenters, which was nominated for the Dublin Literary Award. His new book is Postmuslim, which is available at https://peninsulapress.co.uk/products/postmuslim

1. Beer in the Snooker Club (1964) by Waguih Ghali. Evidently the first Egyptian novel to be written in English, a massive early influence, and an occasion to revisit the normalization debate. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/dec/05/beer-in-snooker-club-ghali-review
2. The 1977 song Zahma by the legendary singer Ahmad Adaweya. Composed by the equally legendary Hany Shenouda and the unrecognized bard Hassan Abu Etman. A landmark song that massively influenced urban folk and pop music and, for me at least, defines the sound of Cairo. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djqFU71juWM
3. The Mummy, aka The Night of Counting the Years (1969) by Shadi Abdel Salam. A one-of-a-kind film on which I wrote a whole monograph. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064703/
4. Samir Rafi’s 1949 painting Life’s Tragedy, and Cairo’s Surrealist/Marxist Art et Liberte movement (1938–1948). https://www.barjeelartfoundation.org/collection/lifes-tragedy-samir-rafi/
5. The Egyptian tradition of melodic Quran recitation as exemplified by the one-man opera known as Mustafa Ismail. One very short example of what he can do, from Surat Fatir: Verse 22. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/LvOH_D0CTI0
6. Egypt’s cultural Golden Age in the Life magazine-like photography of Farouk Ibrahim. https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/egypt/2023/03/21/farouk-ibrahim-the-most-famous-egyptian-photographer-youve-never-heard-of/

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Jean Findlay discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Jean Findlay is the author of Chasing Lost Time – the Life of CK Scott Moncrieff, Soldier, Spy and Translator published in 2014 by Chatto and Windus, London, and by FSG, New York. The Queen's Lender was awarded the Hawthornden Fellowship 2018 and Lavigny International Writer’s Fellowship 2019. Her new book is The Bohemian Queen: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bohemian-Queen-Queens-Europe-2026/dp/1910895849.

1. The origin of the term Bohemian https://villagepreservation.org/2013/04/16/how-bohemians-got-their-name/
2. That Europe had a war that lasted Thirty years https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/30-years-war-1618-48-and-second-defenestration-prague
3. Sectarianism didn’t originate in Glasgow and Edinburgh https://fpc.org.uk/northern-ireland-still-a-deeply-divided-society/
4. There are 250 types of bumble bees www.bumblebeeconservation.org
5. People have been using fake news to slander and discredit public figures since the beginning of time https://theconversation.com/medieval-england-loved-rumours-conspiracies-and-fake-news-about-queens-227111
6. That Gregorian Chant hits a sound level that heals your body https://www.tfp.org/how-gregorian-chant-benefits-the-health-of-the-bodyand-soul/

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