Samuel Shimon discusses the topic of Arab literature. By found- ing the Magazin »Banipal« 17 years ago, he and Margaret Obank built a Bridge between Arab and World literature: Contemporary Arab literature is promoted through translations in English. Two years ago he founded Kikah, a platform to introduce foreign literature to the Arabic world. He also published also »Beirut 39«, an anthology with pieces by Arab writers under the age of 40. But is it justified to group work from such a vast geographical area and speak acutally about »Arab« literature? It is, says Samuel Shimon, because the Arabs – whatever their spoken dialect or state loyalty is – share a literary culture and a key range.