M. Ibrahim and the Flowers of the Koran
Mr. Ibrahim and the Flowers of the Koran is a novel by Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt, originally published in French in 2001. A film adaptation, Monsieur Ibrahim, was released in 2003. Origins Mr. Ibrahim and the Flowers of the Koran was originally written in French as a play, based upon the life of Schmitt's friend, Bruno Abraham Kremer. Kremer had asked Schmitt to write a play based upon his life growing up in Paris, specifically the relationship with his grandfather, Mr. Abraham. The play was written with only one character, Moïse (Moses), referred to as "Momo" an adult, who reflected upon his childhood. In 2001, it was rewritten, and was printed as a short novel by publisher Albin Michel, the second in the religious series "Cycle de l'Invisible" (Cycle of the Invisible). In some respects, the book closely resembles the novel "La Vie devant soi" (Life in front of you) by Romain Gary under the pseudonym Emile Ajar. In that book, a young Muslim boy, also called Momo (here a nickname for Muhammad), lives with an old Jewish woman, Madame Rosa. Momo often goes to visit an old Muslim man, Monsieur Hamil, who teaches him about the religion, subsequently entering into a