A challenge to our well-read-ness

Guardian Unlimited | World dispatch | Language barrier
I found this a challenge: loving the enemy implies effort at understanding 'them'. Since my geopolitical situation defines for me who the enemy currently are [not an assessment I would necessarily agree with otherwise] then my task is clearer. So in the light of this article I'm thinking that I should try to get to know better Arabic literature and to understand the culture it presupposes better ... not sure how to start, and indeed I find that my appetite for the idea is not yet stimulated enough, but ... anyone else for a go?