Zabiba wa'l-Malik (Zabiba and the King) is a romantic 160-page novel believed to have been written (or heavily-influenced by the thoughts and guidance of) Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. It is also being turned into a musical by the Iraqi National Theater, dubbed the country's biggest production ever.
While the book cover merely says that it is written "By Its Author", even the CIA has good reason to believe that it is Saddam-influenced. The plot of the novel concerns a king who falls madly in love with an unhappily married woman named Zabiba. Reading through the thinly-veiled metaphors, Zabiba represents the people of Iraq, with Saddam as the king. In the novel, Zabiba is raped on January 17th, which is the same day that the US launched the offensive on Iraq in 1991 and eventually drove them out of Kuwait. The king pledges a war "that will not end until victory or death". Zabiba is killed in her struggle. The king dies after he avenges his lover's honor. There is also a lot of talk of succession, and Saddam - who is no young man anymore - may be preparing his people for a change in regime through the novel.