FREE 
In the Lounge
Omar Imady will be giving a reading from his new book, The Gospel of Damascus. Following the reading, he will personally autograph books.

Omar Imady was born in Damascus to an American mother and a Syrian father. He was educated at Macalester College and subsequently received his doctorate in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. He has worked for the UN and, later, as a professor and dean at the New York Institute of Technolgy (NYIT).

For over twenty-two years, Imady was the disciple of Bashir al-Bani (1911-2008), a Damascene Muslim scholar and a renowned Sufi mentor - a relationship which continues to impact Imady's creative writing. Imady participated alongside al-Bani in many interfaith dialogues and ecumenical events and was invited to participate in the Vatican organized Religions for Peace in the Spirit of Assisi (Milan, 2000).

Imady is the author of several books in Arabic and English, including The Rise & Fall of Muslim Civil Society, and When You’re Shoved from the Right, Look to the Left. The Gospel of Damascus is his first novel.