Memoirs of an Arabian Princess: An Accurate Translation of Her Authentic Voice (Writings by Emily Ruete, born Sayyida Salme) Paperback – December 30, 2022

Like Andrea Stumpf, whom I recently discovered is my cousin, I am also a descendent of Salme's and have long read Salme's memoirs again and again. Salme's memoirs have been translated into English a couple of times over the past 100 or so years. Reading the various previous translations, I find Salme's voice and her living presence is sometimes distorted and clouded. Andrea has done an extremely deep dive into the original text and used her native fluency in both English and German, as well as her family memories of Salme, to recreate Salme in an intimate and clear voice.There are hard parts of Salme's story for some of us. She has for us a questionable attitude toward slavery, which was ever present in the world of 19th century Zanzibar. I must admit that I feel a bit queasy at some points in her narrative on this point. But Salme does have a very nuanced view of slavery that, while impossible for many of us today to accept, is still of valuable historical interest.The main takeaway that you will get from this narrative is the truly magical environment that Salme was in as part of the Royal family of Zanzibar and Oman. Nights of multi colored lanterns covering acres of park land, where people lounged and talked in public and in secret. Mansions of mirrors from floor to ceiling.But also the quite human and personal relationships between children playing in the grand court yards of the royal palaces. Experiences anyone can relate to their own life. Then later in life, palace intrigue between the adults of a new generation, which is a story that was as exciting as any action movie, but then tragic.Which leads to the voice again of Salme, which in the aftermath of the palace revolution and the death of her mother becomes every more lonely.The Salme that emerges from this is of an extremely intelligent and sensitive person, master of several languages, learning to read and write in secret, as that was forbidden women at the time. And in loneliness looking outward to her future husband, a German merchant in Zanzibar, which brings on the equally fantastic adventure of Salme in Europe after her perilous escape from Zanzibar. But that will be detailed in a future work of writings from Salme that I believe Andrea is working on.I recommend this current translation of Salme's Memoirs very highly, the best translation in English available today.

I cannot believe I read this entire book!! Kept my interest. I’m not a huge book reader. But I am a huge learner w curiosity. Insightful book regarding Arab/Eastern culture written by an insider and translated wonderfully. Easy to read. Chapters on Zanzibar/Oman climate, commerce, food, architecture, healthcare, education, as well as royalty interactions and infighting were fascinating. In my opinion the princess’ possessed extremely strong and unique gifts of memory recall,detail, and description. I learned much!! Thank you.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. It’s a fascinating story and the translation is exceptional. Highly recommend!