In apublicspace.org Brian T. Edwards writes "Cairo 2010: After Kefaya: ... Taher’s and Alaidy’s generation, what I’m tentatively calling Cairo 2010, seems at once to be writing about the highly personal and the social and is distinct from the 1990s writers. Their experiences are different, as is the way they encounter and depict the Cairo of today, the globally inflected and locally congested space of the megalopolis. Mansoura Ez Eldin, an acclaimed novelist and the young book review editor of the literary weekly Akhbar al-Adab, speaks eloquently of this newest cohort and its departure from the concerns of the previous generations of Egyptian novelists... MORE
In a recent American University in Cairo Press newsletter, Dr. Nigel Fletcher-Jones, the press's director, announced the launch of a new Imprint named "Hoopoe" after the strikingly-feathered middle-eastern bird. "The aim is to offer bold, contemporary writing [..] to readers who may not be familiar with the region, and to select Arabic fiction that challenges headlines, re-imagines histories, and celebrates original storytelling," said Dr Nigel. The hoopoe is a "beautiful bird found across the Middle East, known for its distinctive crown of black and white feathers, as well as its unique call. In ancient Egypt, the hoopoe was considered a source of good fortune, and in the holy books it is depicted as a trusted messenger." Three translated novels are offered for this, their first season: The Televangelist by Ibrahim Essa, an eye-opening satire on Egyptian social mores; Whitefly by Abdelilah Hamdouchi, a murder mystery about Moroccan ill...
Last night saw the opening session of Dar El Tanweer's book club, in partnership with Dr. Mohamed Aboul Ghar's own book club, which has been running for years. The gathering celebrated author Alaa El Aswani's new novel Nadi Al-Sayyaraat (the Automobile Club). Dr. Alaa talked about "the Place" as hero or main character; about doing novel research , familiarizing oneself with the historic period and facts of the era where the novel is set; and the process of novel writing. He quoted Isabel Allende as saying that, whereas a short story falls on her hear like an apple from a tree, a novel takes painstaking work and skill to polish. He estimates that the novella-writing is a much more challenging skill than novel-writing. In attendance was Ibrahim El Mo'alem, CEO of publishing giant Dar el Shourouk and publisher of the daily by the same name. In response to a comment from a participant about he high price of his books, he explained that the publishing industry i...
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