He Didn’t Even Know Why

The book He Didn’t Even Know Why by Mahmoud Barabadi has recently been published for the 12+ age group. The story revolves around the Shafaq printing house, which has only two workers: Reza, stocky and short with a unibrow, who operates the printing machine, and Mansour, a young man whose upper lip has just sprouted hair, who works as a typesetter. Mansour spends the three months of summer working in the printing house to pay for his education. A disagreement arises between Mr. Shafaq and Mansour, triggering a series of events and adventures. Along the way, the story raises questions that engage the reader’s mind.

A passage from the book reads:

Mansour greeted him. Shafaq didn’t answer. He glanced at the stacked work and walked over to Reza, who was standing by the printing press. He picked up one of the wedding cards, looked at it, and said, “This isn’t straight. How many times do I have to tell you to check the form properly? What’s all this mess here? Sometimes you should even sweep a little.” Mansour replied, “Okay, sir, but I’m not your errand boy. I’m a typesetter.” Shafaq, startled by Mansour’s answer, suddenly went pale, and his lips began to tremble. He didn’t let Mansour finish his sentence and sharply struck him beside the ear.