title: Habib Selmi
text: # Habib Selmi
  
  Habib Selmi (Tunisian Arabic: حبيب السالمي) (born 31 January 1951) is a Tunisian novelist and short story writer.
  
  ## Early life
  
  He was born in Al-Ala near the historic city of Kairouan. To date, he has published eight novels and two short story collections.
  
  ## Career
  
  His books include:
  
  * Jabal al-'Anz (Goat Mountain), 1988
  * Surat Badawi Mayyit (Portrait of a Dead Bedouin), 1990
  * Matahat al-Raml (Sand Labyrinth), 1994
  * Hufar Dafi'a (Warm Pits), 1999
  * Ushaq Bayya (Bayya's Lovers), 2002
  * Asrar Abdallah (Abdallah’s Secrets), 2006
  * Rawaïh Marie-Claire (The Scents of Marie-Claire), 2008
  * Nisāʾ al-basatīn (The Women of al-Basatin), 2011
  * Al-ishtīāq ilā al-jāra (Longing for the Woman Next Door), 2020
  
  His work has been shortlisted three times for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, in 2009 (for The Scents of Marie-Claire), 2012 (for The Women of al-Basatin), and 2021 (for Longing for the Woman Next Door). His work has been translated into a number of languages, including English and French and has featured in multiple issues of Banipal magazine.
  
  Selmi has lived in Paris since 1985, where he teaches Arabic literature.
  
  