The writer Yasuko Thanh discusses the new book written by Hassan Kanafani Pizza Before We Die: An Eyewitness Account in Gaza (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2026), which she edited, with Joseph Planta.
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Pizza Before We Die: An Eyewitness Account in Gaza by Hassan Kanafani, with Yasuko Thanh (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2026).
Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Pizza Before We Die [1] |
Text of the introduction by Joseph Planta:
I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.
Hassan Kanafani is a pseudonym of a young man in Gaza who posted to Reddit eye-witness accounts of what was happening around him. He described his life as a displaced citizen, and expressed frustrations about what he was experiencing and seeing. Soon, an effort was afoot, with people in various cities and countries to get all of this writing published. Yasuko Thanh, who joins me now, was attending a rally for Palestine in Victoria, when she was told of this effort to publish a book of Kanafani’s writing so that there could be some money for him and his family. That book, published earlier this month is Pizza Before We Die: An Eyewitness Account in Gaza. I’ll ask Yasuko, who spoke to me two weeks ago from Victoria, about what the writing represents, and its importance in getting a sense of what’s really happening on the ground. I’ll get Yasuko to tell us about the editing process, and how they arrived at the book’s title. I’ll also ask her about how she built trust between her and Hassan, and how they’ve regarded one another through the editing and publishing of this book. Yasuko Thanh is a writer and creative writing instructor at the University of Victoria. Her first novel, Mysterious Fragrance of the Yellow Mountains won the 2016 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize. Her bestselling memoir Mistakes to Run With was a finalist for the Jim Deva Prize for Writing that Provokes. Her most recent novel is To the Bridge, and her forthcoming novel The Falling Maria will be out in 2027. Pizza Before We Die is published by Arsenal Pulp Press. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Yasuko Thanh; Ms. Thanh, good morning.
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