Arabic fiction is very rich. Novel writing in Saudi Arabia too traces its origin to classical age. But of late Saudi fiction has evolved beyond the genre of “art for art sake” and started to take up social issues. These are the findings of a research paper by an Indian diplomat. Dr. Hifzur Rahman, who wrote a thesis on “Social Trends in Saudi Novels 1930-2000,” explains in his paper now published in a book form the trends, development and transformation of Saudi novels. The thesis was the first research paper in India and has the privilege of being one of the very few research works on Saudi novels outside the Kingdom. The thesis is divided into many chapters that explores the cultural and literary background of the Kingdom in the first half of the 20th century. It highlights the evolution of novel writing in the form of short story-telling in modern Arabic literature. “It is worth mentioning that novels by women writers present accurate details about women's feelings, their sensitivities and concerns more than what is portrayed by their men counterparts,” Dr. Hifzur Rahman told the Saudi Gazette. Saudi literature is the best medium to fight European literary propaganda from spreading Western civilization in the Arab-Islamic world aimed at eroding moral and Eastern cultural values, he said. “Saudi novels in the 20th century, numbering more than 200, present various styles and themes depicting a realistic picture of the concerns of the people and highlighting their aspirations, issues and problems,” he said. He said Abdul Quddus Al-Ansari, was the pioneer modern Saudi prose writer, who felt the need to organize a defensive campaign to resist Western designs to invade the Arab society. “Al-Ansari's Twins” in 1930 warned the Arab Ummah of damages coming from the foreign educational institutes and their deviant ideas. Thus, not only did he see these educational institutes as sources of spreading Western education, but also considered them as sources of destruction of Oriental culture and Islamic civilization,” Dr. Hifzur Rahman explains. A host of other Saudi novelists followed this trend till the end of 2000. “The Saudi experience of novel writing has gone through three phases: the beginning; technical maturity and advancement; and rejuvenation and modernization,” said the author. Earlier novelists adopted direct reporting method, took extra care in the use of vocabulary and put utmost focus on content. Novels in the second phase achieved maturity, technical and artistic development. Novels in the third phase, especially in 1990s, witnessed a remarkable progress in terms of technique, style and content. Critics started to recognize Saudi novelists, who included Hamid Daminhuri, Ibrahim Al-Nasir, Hamza Boqari, Abdul Aziz Al-Mishri, Ghazi Al-Gusaibi, Turki Al-Hamad, Abduhu Khal, Amal Shatta, Rajaa Alam, Laila Al
