Kahlil Gibran achieved lasting eminence and fame as a writer in two disparate cultures. A liberating force in Arabic literature, he also became one of the most widely read authors in English, his adopted tongue.

His work possesses a distinctive flavour of ancient wisdom and mysticism, often leaving the reader surprised to discover that its creator lived in New York for 19 years.

His popularity as an Arab writer in the West was unprecedented and today The Prophet is one of the most highly regarded poems of modern times.