Blogs in April 2021

Akhenaten, Dweller in Truth 27th April 2021

In this beguiling new novel, originally published in 1985 and now appearing for the first time in the United States, Mahfouz tells with extraordinary insight the story of the “heretic pharaoh,” or “sun king,”–and the first known monotheistic ruler–whose...

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Midaq Alley 14th January 2021

Widely acclaimed as Naguib Mahfouz’s best novel, Midaq Alley brings to life one of the hustling, teeming back alleys of Cairo in the 1940s. From Zaita the cripple-maker to Kirsha the hedonistic cafe owner, from Abbas the barber who...

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Sugar Street: Cairo Trilogy 3 4th July 2019

Sugar Street, the climactic conclusion to Mafhouz’s masterpiece trilogy, is the captivating portrait of a family struggling to change with the rise of modern Egypt. As Cairo shrugs off the final vestiges of colonialism, Ahmad Al Jawad has lost...

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Palace Of Desire: Cairo Trilogy 2 4th July 2019

The sensual and provocative second volume in the Cairo Trilogy, Palace Of Desire follows the Al Jawad family into the awakening world of the 1920’s and the sometimes violent clash between Islamic ideals, personal dreams and modern realities. Having...

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Palace Walk: Cairo Trilogy 1 4th July 2019

A sweeping and evocative portrait of both a family and a country struggling to move toward independence in a society that has resisted change for centuries. Set against the backdrop of Britain’s occupation of Egypt immediately after World War...

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