Princesses Street

Although “Princesses Street” covers the events of one or two years of Jabra’s Iraqi life, it places us at the heart of the literary and artistic event, introducing us to the atmosphere and personalities that had a significant impact on the creative process throughout the region. It also outlines a broad spectrum of influences that embraced this period and later yielded results.
The artistic and literary circles that formed in the early 1950s, brimming with grand ideas and dreams, laid the foundation for subsequent movements and innovations on multiple levels and contributed to the creation of a new artistic taste.
The literary and artistic spectrum that Jabra paints of this period is highly significant. Without these references to names, events, and achievements, the reader might not be able to comprehend subsequent developments. Therefore, Jabra’s testimony in this area is essential, especially since there are attempts to re-read the period according to whims and desires that differ from its actual nature. Jabra was not chronicling or documenting this book, but the book’s extensive footnotes shed light on many of the events and prevailing climates. Beyond the events that characterize Princesses Street, the boldness in expressing things, with great frankness, is another characteristic. This is something our literature has not yet become accustomed to, except in a few examples, making it a model to be emulated.