"Al-Remis" is my first novel, written to fill a void that suddenly invaded my life after I was forced into exile. It came filled with events I lived and experienced before migrating—events that shaped the details of the narrative scenes, imposed its characters, and still dominate the dramatic picture of Algeria in the 1990s. Everything was permissible before me: dramatic scenes of an entire generation whose dreams were stolen by war. A generation stripped of its means of resistance, and then killed until it was killed again. The situation in Algeria was, and still is, one that does not respect life. A situation where the ignorant compete to kill dreamers, and cowards conspire to assassinate heroes.

"Al-Remis" is the name of an abyss on the edge of which Algeria has stood for more than two thousand years. Throughout history, the country has been pushed towards plunging into it. Algeria always hesitates in the face of life, until its children are martyred in its place. Burhan was a hero who had to die, for Algeria does not love life for its heroes. And if life is granted to some of them, they turn into legends, like Ammar Bouzour, who became a legend whose existence people are unaware of. He was alive only in their consciences; they told his stories as if he were a fictional character.

"Al-Remis" is a serious attempt to understand the complex reality of a people whose victories have almost all turned into defeats. A people who, throughout history, have been stripped of their means of resistance, only to invent new ones each time.

About the Author:
Nasreddine Alawi was born in Constantine, Algeria.

• He has worked in the media for about twenty-five years. He began his career at a government newspaper called "Al-Masaa," then moved to Algerian television where he worked as an announcer.
• He founded an independent daily newspaper, "Al-Youm," in 1999, which is still published under his name today.
• He was forced into exile in 2003 due to disagreements with the authorities and has since worked for Abu Dhabi TV, Dubai TV, and then Al Jazeera.
• He studied at the University of Algiers, where he enrolled in the Faculty of Political Science and Media in 1981.

Book Details:

• Publishing House: Dar Al-Farabi for Publishing and Distribution
• Year of Publication: 2010
• Number of Pages: 152