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English edition
Feb
2011
204 pp.
Hardbound
15X23 cm
$24.95
LE 100.00
ISBN
978 977 416 461 3
For sale worldwide
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On the State of Egypt
A Novelist's Provocative Reflections
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Alaa Al Aswany
Translated by
Jonathan Wright
The bestselling author of the Yacoubian Building and Chicago turns his attention to current affairs in Egypt
In the novels and short stories of Alaa Al Aswany, characters struggle with class differences, police brutality, poverty, sexual harassment, and political corruption; now, in these political and social essays first published as weekly articles in the Arabic press, Al Aswany considers these same issues that torment modern Egyptian society. He has a great deal to say about one of the most pressing questions on everyone’s mind: who will be the next president of Egypt, and how will he be elected? He discusses the moral ambiguity of appointed politicians, the suitability of democratic reforms in a Muslim society, and the inherent contradiction in the actions of the religiously observant policeman who tortures or the man who harasses women. Critical, controversial, and straightforward, Al Aswany asks his government to serve the people, and the people to demand what they deserve.
Alaa Al Aswany was born in 1957. A dentist by profession, he is the author of the bestselling novels The Yacoubian Building (AUC Press, 2005) and Chicago (AUC Press, 2007), and the novella and short story collection Friendly Fire (AUC Press 2009).
Jonathan Wright is the translator of Judgment Day by Rasha al Ameer (AUC Press, 2011).
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Reviews
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“ Fearless”— Abdallah F. Hassan, The New York Times
“ The columns fearlessly censure the Egyptian president, the ruling party and the vast security apparatuses that have monopolized power, silenced dissent and rigged elections”— Abdallah F. Hassan, The New York Times
“Aswany is best known as a novelist, but this book is a collection of columns he has contributed to two Egyptian newspapers over the past few years. The columns help the reader understand the context in Egypt in that period, and are courageously written. Aswany discusses issues of corruption, police brutality, religion and its place in society, (false) piety, and the question of Egyptian Christians, among others. As a Muslim, it is important for his voice to be amplified, and this book is a vehicle for that. He is a critique of the former regime, and concludes many of his columns with the sentence,
“Democracy is the solution.” ”—The Global Ministries
“An eye-opening and important book for everyone who cares about justice.”—Mary Whipple Reviews
“A good example of this forceful, single-minded view - as well as a showcase of some of the author's other qualities as a columnist: humour, bluntness and optimism.”—Ursula Lindsey, The National
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