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Informal
Biography
Born to Wade Matar: a
pioneering architect and Leila Richo: an artistic home maker, Gladys
Matar found herself in an ideal environment for the growth of her
artistic and literary talents from early age.
In Latakia, Ms. Matar
attended “Les Carmelites” catholic school from kindergarten
through middle school, then moved to the public school system when
private religious schools were not permitted in the country any
more. Later, she attended the University of Latakia’s foreign
literature program and graduated in 1984 with a degree in French
literature.
In 1982, while still in
college, her short story “The Rain” won the Arab Writers’
Guild’s first prize for short story in Syria.
In 1984, her short story
entitled: “Who Would Bring Aiisha Back Her Toy” won the
prestigious Arab Woman Magazine’s first prize for Arabic short story
with contestants participating from countries across the entire Arab
World.
In 1989, while Ms. Matar
was in Miami, Florida pursuing her first in-depth studies of the
arts and getting trained as a professional translator, her article
entitled: “Donkey’s Tail” won the first prize offered by The
Middle East newspaper out of London, England.
Upon returning home, she
published her first book: “Awaiting the Limestone to Flourish,”
with an introduction by renowned author Adel Abou-Shanab, which was
republished in 1989 by “Nofal Publishing House” in Beirut.
From that point through
2006, Ms. Matar produced amply, publishing “Fleeting Joy”: A
collection of short stories and “Off Beat ”: A collection of
articles on the arts. These were followed by “Love, Sized for the
World” another collection of short stories offered by Nofal
Publishing House as a first in a series of books targeting middle
school students, which was later adopted as required reading by the
ministry of Education in Lebanon. The introduction to this book and
its enriching end-of-chapter quizzes testing the student’s
comprehension were contributed by Antoine Toomey, PhD, one of
Lebanon’s best education specialists.
In 2001, Ward House in
Damascus, published Ms. Matar’s “Velvet Revolution”: a work
of fiction that was widely distributed attracting a fair share of
critiquing. This book was introduced by the renowned Moroccan author
and thinker Fatima Almarnisi as a novel dealing with “how an Arab
relates to his past.”
In 2003, Al-Hiwar House
in Latakia published “Dormant Desire”: Ms. Matar’s first direct work
on Middle East politics, in which she explored, deeply, the peculiar
world of the big players.
In her “In the Rear
of the Veil of Femaleness,” Ms. Matar sought to delve into the
state-of-mind of the Arab woman. This work, published by Ward House,
is due to come out before the end of 2006, with an introduction by
Abdel-Kabir Alminawi: Morocco’s renowned author and critic.
Ms. Matar continues to
write and publish numerous articles on literary critique and world
politics in a multitude of Arabic publications with emphasis on
reputable literary websites. She publishes regularly in “Arab
Panorama” out of Los Angeles.
Ms. Matar appeared in
many exclusive radio and television interviews across the Arab World.
Gladys Matar masters the
English and French languages in addition to her mother tongue:
Arabic.
Professional
Memberships:
Ms. Matar dedicates
her time to research, write, translate and deliver lectures on the
current issues of the world, as well as her ghost writing works as
possibly the first professional ghost writer in the Arab World. |
