In an Antique Land was a unique book for me, as its two threads focus on a small town that I grew up in for the first 20+ years of my life and a Country that I have lived in for the last 3 years. So I had a unique connect with this book.
Not so suprisingly, the description of my hometown did not ring a bell as it focussed mostly on the town as it existed 800+ years ago. The description of rural Egypt created a veritable clang in my head as I kept thinking to myself "How true" or "Yes, I know someone who would have reacted the exact same way"
This is a book of non fiction. Amitav Ghosh chanced upon a letter between Abraham Ben Yiju, a Jewish merchant living in Mangalore, India, and Khalaf ibn Ishaq from Egypt, written in 1132AD. Part of this narrative focuses on Ghosh's search for more documents relating to Ben Yiju and part of the narrative tries to imagine the world that Ben Yiju lived in.
The other narrative in the book, covers Ghosh's stay in rural Egypt (Mashawy and Lataifa) and it was this section that I found infinitely more interesting and hence hope to pick up his book of essays The Imam and the Indian which promise to shed more light on this phase of his life.
It is in this second narrative that Amitav's gift of story telling is showcased, while in the first narrative it feels stilted, focussed on facts and doesn't flow as naturally. Blending history with a a current travelogue is an art perfected by William Dalrymple and sadly in comparison, Ghosh didn't match up.
While Ben Yiju did spend time in Egypt and his letters were written to people living there and most of the surviving documentation came from the Geniza Documents cache from the Ben Ezra Synagogue in the Coptic Cairo area of modern day Cairo and Fustat of Ancient Cairo, this is the only point at which the two narratives seem to meet. For the rest of the book, they just continue parallel to each other.
In the final chapters, when Ghosh heads out towards the tomb of a Jewish Saint in rural Egypt venerated by Muslims and Jews alike, I hoped it would bring about a meeting of the parallel stories, but unfortunately it didn't.
Both narratives on their own are great and very illuminating, I just didn't see the point of putting them together.
Its a great read for someone visiting the Fustat area or interested in observations/revelations from the Geniza Cache or life in Rural Egypt.
Also Published on desicritics
Showing posts with label Book Review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Book Review. Show all posts
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Book Review: The Poison Tree - Planted and Grown in Egypt
A friend sent me the link to this yesterday. The book is legally donwloadable for free from Marwa Rakha's own website. While currently available in English, she promises that the Arabic translation too will soon be online.
The book is written in a semi disjointed "part blog-part diary-part letter" fashion and someone who is used to a structured flow when reading, may start out feeling a bit disconcerted. But if you persevere you can gain some insights into Egytian culture, sexuality, morality and society. The unifying theme of the book revolves around gender stereotypes, dating and marriage and how men and women are held to different standards in society. While this may be true across the world, it is more pronounced in Egypt.
I often wondered how so many Egyptian friends and acquaintances kept ending up divorced within barely a year or two of marriage, sometimes with new born kids who were not even a year old. Some have ended up remarrying men who had been unfaithful to them during their first attempt at marriage. This being a very sensitive and private matter, I have never felt comfortable enough to actually ask them the question directly. But Marwa's book has shed some light on at least some of the reasons, which seem to lie in Social Conditioning.
There were parts that I skipped over, but there were also parts that are really insightful.
This book is worth reading if you are interested in human behavior or are visiting Egypt and would like to know a little more about people you will encounter.
But, I would highly recommend the book to any non-Egyptian girl/woman/lady planning to get herself an Egyptian boyfriend or Egyptian husband. Most Egyptian men think and operate differently from "Western" men and its important for a female to know what she is getting herself into before she gets in too deep.
While the book may also be guilty of stereotyping men and women, there are a lot of grains of truth behind the characterisations.
The book could be classified as chick-lit, but there is a lot you can begin to understand about Egyptian society and how it operates through the eyes of a Single Independent Woman
If you would prefer to read the book as a paperback or on kindle, they are both available via Amazon.
Also published on desicritics.org
The book is written in a semi disjointed "part blog-part diary-part letter" fashion and someone who is used to a structured flow when reading, may start out feeling a bit disconcerted. But if you persevere you can gain some insights into Egytian culture, sexuality, morality and society. The unifying theme of the book revolves around gender stereotypes, dating and marriage and how men and women are held to different standards in society. While this may be true across the world, it is more pronounced in Egypt.
I often wondered how so many Egyptian friends and acquaintances kept ending up divorced within barely a year or two of marriage, sometimes with new born kids who were not even a year old. Some have ended up remarrying men who had been unfaithful to them during their first attempt at marriage. This being a very sensitive and private matter, I have never felt comfortable enough to actually ask them the question directly. But Marwa's book has shed some light on at least some of the reasons, which seem to lie in Social Conditioning.
There were parts that I skipped over, but there were also parts that are really insightful.
This book is worth reading if you are interested in human behavior or are visiting Egypt and would like to know a little more about people you will encounter.
But, I would highly recommend the book to any non-Egyptian girl/woman/lady planning to get herself an Egyptian boyfriend or Egyptian husband. Most Egyptian men think and operate differently from "Western" men and its important for a female to know what she is getting herself into before she gets in too deep.
While the book may also be guilty of stereotyping men and women, there are a lot of grains of truth behind the characterisations.
The book could be classified as chick-lit, but there is a lot you can begin to understand about Egyptian society and how it operates through the eyes of a Single Independent Woman
If you would prefer to read the book as a paperback or on kindle, they are both available via Amazon.
Also published on desicritics.org
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Book Review : Egypt Pocket Guides - Alberto Silioti
The AUC Press has brought out a wonderful series of pocket guides for Egypt by Alberto Silioti.
Each of the books gives a quick glimpse into the area it covers, in just enough depth for the average tourist.
The aerial view maps reminiscent of the DK Eyewitness guides are much easier to navigate than flat maps.
The books are printed on glossy paper which brings the photographs used to life. There are just enough technical details for those mildly interested in them but not too much to bore those who aren't.
Egypt Pocket Guide : The Pyramids covers the pyramids of Giza, Saqqara, Dahshur and Meidum. It also includes Memphis just to complete the Pharonic circuit around Cairo.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Luxor, Karnak and the Theban Temples includes everything that you would want to see in and around Luxor. Luxor Temple, Avenue of sphinxes, Karnak Temple, Colossi of Memnon, Medinat Habu, Ramesseum, Hatchepsuts Temple, Luxor Museum, Mummification Museum and Dendara.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Islamic Cairo gives the historical time frame of the various Islamic dynasties. It also covers the major Islamic Monuments in Cairo : Ibn tulun Mosque, Gayer Anderson Museum, al Ghuri Complex, Al Azhar mosque, al Hakim mosque, Khan al Khalili, Qalawun & Barquq Complexes, Sultan Hassan Madrassa, al Muayyad Mosque, Blue Mosque, Citadel, Mamluk Tombs, Nilometer and the Museum of Islamic Art.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Coptic Egypt starts with an informative section on Coptic Christianity and monasticism. It only covers the Synagogue of Ben Ezra, Coptic Museum and Hanging Church in detail. The rest of the churches in the Coptic area; it just skims over. It does give details of all 4 monasteries in Wadi Natrun and the 2 monasteries of the Red Sea but not those of Upper Egypt.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Alexandria and the North Coast covers everything of interest in Alexandria: the Qaitbay Fort, Lighthouse of Alexandria, Serapeum, Pompei's Pillar, Roman Theater, Catacombs, Greco Roman museum, Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Jewelry Museum, Montaza Palace and some of the Ncropolis around Alexandria and Abu Qir. It even covers Alamein.
Each of these books costs 30Le if you buy them in Egypt.
Each of the books gives a quick glimpse into the area it covers, in just enough depth for the average tourist.
The aerial view maps reminiscent of the DK Eyewitness guides are much easier to navigate than flat maps.
The books are printed on glossy paper which brings the photographs used to life. There are just enough technical details for those mildly interested in them but not too much to bore those who aren't.
Egypt Pocket Guide : The Pyramids covers the pyramids of Giza, Saqqara, Dahshur and Meidum. It also includes Memphis just to complete the Pharonic circuit around Cairo.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Luxor, Karnak and the Theban Temples includes everything that you would want to see in and around Luxor. Luxor Temple, Avenue of sphinxes, Karnak Temple, Colossi of Memnon, Medinat Habu, Ramesseum, Hatchepsuts Temple, Luxor Museum, Mummification Museum and Dendara.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Islamic Cairo gives the historical time frame of the various Islamic dynasties. It also covers the major Islamic Monuments in Cairo : Ibn tulun Mosque, Gayer Anderson Museum, al Ghuri Complex, Al Azhar mosque, al Hakim mosque, Khan al Khalili, Qalawun & Barquq Complexes, Sultan Hassan Madrassa, al Muayyad Mosque, Blue Mosque, Citadel, Mamluk Tombs, Nilometer and the Museum of Islamic Art.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Coptic Egypt starts with an informative section on Coptic Christianity and monasticism. It only covers the Synagogue of Ben Ezra, Coptic Museum and Hanging Church in detail. The rest of the churches in the Coptic area; it just skims over. It does give details of all 4 monasteries in Wadi Natrun and the 2 monasteries of the Red Sea but not those of Upper Egypt.
Egypt Pocket Guide : Alexandria and the North Coast covers everything of interest in Alexandria: the Qaitbay Fort, Lighthouse of Alexandria, Serapeum, Pompei's Pillar, Roman Theater, Catacombs, Greco Roman museum, Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Jewelry Museum, Montaza Palace and some of the Ncropolis around Alexandria and Abu Qir. It even covers Alamein.
Each of these books costs 30Le if you buy them in Egypt.
Book Review : An ABC Escapade through Egypt
It isn't just for the little ones who are learning the alphabet, but can be a reading tool even for slightly older children.
Cactus Crunching Camels and Underwater Urchins share space with crunchy konafa and jumping jerboas. Bernadette Simpson uses alliterations to create a fun reading experience accompanied with some lovely colorful photographs that make reading fun as well as informative.
Bernadette first moved to Cairo in 1993 with her parents and did a part of her schooling in this country before returning to the US to study further. She then came back to Cairo and was inspired with all the activity around her to write a book that would be fun, educational, informative and have content that would be familiar to its readers. This book is the result of those efforts.
Her book is available in Egypt in most of the major bookstores:
http://bernadettesimpson.com/buythebook.html
Also available on Amazon:
If, after reading the book, you still want more, you can visit her blog http://escapadethroughegypt.wordpress.com/ which lists more alliterations for the alphabet.
Her mother Ginda Simpson is also a writer and painter.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Book Review : The Jewel of Medina
I had written about the controversy surrounding "The Jewel of Medina" a couple of months ago, but it hadn't really inspired me to go out and buy the book immediately. Of course there was the other matter of it not being available in a Middle Eastern country. But when a friend of mine told me she had the book in case I was interested, I decided to see what the fuss was all about.
The book was initially quite ho-hum (compared to some of the other books I have read on the subject) while it covered the childhood politics around a little girl growing up in a polygamous family where her own mother was the second wife. The girl just happens to be Aisha Bint Abi Bakr, herself an extremely controversial character in Islam. After the Prophets death, she led an army against his Son-in-law Ali, which was the cause for the Sunni-Shia split.
Sunnis claim Aisha was the favourite wife of the Prophet, while Shiites believe that he disliked her for her disobedience. Sunni accounts put the Prophet in Aisha's embrace at the time of his death and Shiites believe that he died in Ali's arms.
Why is The Jewel so inflammatory?
Conservative Catholics across the globe were vociferously against "The DaVinci Code" as it was based on the anti-thesis of a non-negotiable fact - that Jesus was married and sired a bloodline. This questioned the foundations of the Catholic faith and the vows of celibacy taken by priests and nuns.
"The Jewel of Medina" portrays each edict passed by Mohamed as being one for personal gain. It also caricatures him as an old man in constant sexual overdrive, whose only interest was in finding the next beautiful young bride. Drawing conclusions and elaborating on the fact that, when his male followers were allowed only 4 wives, the limitations did not apply to him. And other such incendiary conclusions.
For someone who is not familiar with the basics behind the Islamic teachings, it is a disastrous book to read, because it will completely distort the idea of Islam and its foundations. Ms Jones in her interviews has claimed that she wrote this book to make Islam more accessible and understandable to the general public in USA.
If this is her target audience, it will only serve to further aggravate the differences between Muslims and non-Muslims in America where a majority of non-Muslims already look upon Muslims with suspicion and in extreme cases, even hatred. Among the non-Muslims in America, there is a wide spread belief that women are completely dominated by men in this religion, they are forced to cover up from head to toe by overbearing fathers and husbands. This book will only serve to deepen and worsen those beliefs. I do not see any "understanding" coming out of this book.
The problem with writing fiction with characters from real life is that very few readers actually have the ability or knowledge to distinguish the line between the blurred lines of fact and fiction in a novel. And how much of this book is fiction? As a non-Muslim with basic information about Islam from my Muslim friends, I was quite riled up about certain injustices being described in certain sections of this book. This is a normal process when reading a book, the skill of the author is in making you feel for the characters. But the way it is portrayed as fact, brings these feelings out back into the world beyond the reading of a book.
What Ms Jones has written is a piece of fiction and not even a well researched one at that. Friends of mine who are scholars in Islamic studies, say that the inaccuracies are innumerable.
Geraldine Brooks (who has extensively researched the history of this era), author of the 1995 nonfiction book, "Nine Parts of Desire" whom Jones has cited as one her initial inspiration, says this in her review of The Jewel of Medina, "if you wish to claim that your novel is "extensively researched", why lurch around in time and space, grabbing at concepts such as hatun, or leading wife, which Jones knows full well belongs to the Ottoman empire of centuries later, or purdah, which exists in Persian, Urdu and Hindi but not Arabic? Why refer to an Islamic veil by the modern Western term "wrapper"? Why have Muslims bowing to Aisha, when bowing is an alien custom to desert Arabia and to Islam's egalitarian ethos?"
Is "The Jewel of Medina" a good story? - Well, it manages to keep your interest going after the initial chapters, wondering what is going to come next? and How will Aisha manage this latest calamity?. But in most parts it reads like Mills & Boone/ Silhouette kind of Soft Porn.
I ask a larger question : "Is it ethical to write a book like this, which caricatures a person who is the cornerstone of a particular religion?
Disclaimer : I do not want to get into a debate about death threats, riots and fatwas that inevitably follow a book of this kind.
Published on desicritics.org
The book was initially quite ho-hum (compared to some of the other books I have read on the subject) while it covered the childhood politics around a little girl growing up in a polygamous family where her own mother was the second wife. The girl just happens to be Aisha Bint Abi Bakr, herself an extremely controversial character in Islam. After the Prophets death, she led an army against his Son-in-law Ali, which was the cause for the Sunni-Shia split.
Sunnis claim Aisha was the favourite wife of the Prophet, while Shiites believe that he disliked her for her disobedience. Sunni accounts put the Prophet in Aisha's embrace at the time of his death and Shiites believe that he died in Ali's arms.
Why is The Jewel so inflammatory?
Conservative Catholics across the globe were vociferously against "The DaVinci Code" as it was based on the anti-thesis of a non-negotiable fact - that Jesus was married and sired a bloodline. This questioned the foundations of the Catholic faith and the vows of celibacy taken by priests and nuns.
"The Jewel of Medina" portrays each edict passed by Mohamed as being one for personal gain. It also caricatures him as an old man in constant sexual overdrive, whose only interest was in finding the next beautiful young bride. Drawing conclusions and elaborating on the fact that, when his male followers were allowed only 4 wives, the limitations did not apply to him. And other such incendiary conclusions.
For someone who is not familiar with the basics behind the Islamic teachings, it is a disastrous book to read, because it will completely distort the idea of Islam and its foundations. Ms Jones in her interviews has claimed that she wrote this book to make Islam more accessible and understandable to the general public in USA.
If this is her target audience, it will only serve to further aggravate the differences between Muslims and non-Muslims in America where a majority of non-Muslims already look upon Muslims with suspicion and in extreme cases, even hatred. Among the non-Muslims in America, there is a wide spread belief that women are completely dominated by men in this religion, they are forced to cover up from head to toe by overbearing fathers and husbands. This book will only serve to deepen and worsen those beliefs. I do not see any "understanding" coming out of this book.
The problem with writing fiction with characters from real life is that very few readers actually have the ability or knowledge to distinguish the line between the blurred lines of fact and fiction in a novel. And how much of this book is fiction? As a non-Muslim with basic information about Islam from my Muslim friends, I was quite riled up about certain injustices being described in certain sections of this book. This is a normal process when reading a book, the skill of the author is in making you feel for the characters. But the way it is portrayed as fact, brings these feelings out back into the world beyond the reading of a book.
What Ms Jones has written is a piece of fiction and not even a well researched one at that. Friends of mine who are scholars in Islamic studies, say that the inaccuracies are innumerable.
Geraldine Brooks (who has extensively researched the history of this era), author of the 1995 nonfiction book, "Nine Parts of Desire" whom Jones has cited as one her initial inspiration, says this in her review of The Jewel of Medina, "if you wish to claim that your novel is "extensively researched", why lurch around in time and space, grabbing at concepts such as hatun, or leading wife, which Jones knows full well belongs to the Ottoman empire of centuries later, or purdah, which exists in Persian, Urdu and Hindi but not Arabic? Why refer to an Islamic veil by the modern Western term "wrapper"? Why have Muslims bowing to Aisha, when bowing is an alien custom to desert Arabia and to Islam's egalitarian ethos?"
Is "The Jewel of Medina" a good story? - Well, it manages to keep your interest going after the initial chapters, wondering what is going to come next? and How will Aisha manage this latest calamity?. But in most parts it reads like Mills & Boone/ Silhouette kind of Soft Porn.
I ask a larger question : "Is it ethical to write a book like this, which caricatures a person who is the cornerstone of a particular religion?
Disclaimer : I do not want to get into a debate about death threats, riots and fatwas that inevitably follow a book of this kind.
Published on desicritics.org
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Lecture by Michael Haag - Author - Vintage Alexandria
Had the good fortune of attending a lecture by Michael Haag, eminent Photographer and author of multiple books about Egypt.
Although he is from London, he has been visiting Alexandria since 1973, prior to which he already had a lot of friends who had emigrated to the UK from Alexandria. Michael's passion for Alexandria emanates from every photograph and is evident in every word that he speaks.
For today's lecture, he focused on a series of old photographs that he collected from private family albums of long term residents of Alexandria. The pictures in this book span a century- between 1860 and 1960. He showcased 30 of the pictures and told us stories behind each one and took us on a marvelous journey into "Vintage Alexandria"
While the costumes were strange (3 piece suits worn while lounging on the sea shore for example) a lot of the buildings were recognisable. Although some of the buildings were destroyed in the bombing of the Western harbour during World War II and a lot of the buildings have been torn down to give way for new ones.
In Michael's eyes, Alexandria was the ultimate Cosmopolitan city until 1971, because the blend of cultures had not come through occupation or colonialism. The Greeks, Italians and other nationalities who lived in the city for over 150 years had been invited by Mohammed Ali to trade through the Alexandria port.
We saw a lot of previously unseen pictures of Lawrence Durell, Safinaz Zulfikar (later married to King Farouk as Queen Farida), Antony Benaki (the Greek cotton trader whose collection formed the basis of the famous Benaki Museum in Athens), Robert Koch (who isolated the cholera virus and developed a vaccine in an Alexandria laboratory) and other famous Alexandrians.
He showed us a picture of Constantine Cavafy from a business card he had printed and handed over to a friend during her wedding. The funny part was that the picture had been taken 15 years earlier! Cavafy continued to use the same picture for the rest of his life :)
The one thing that hasn't changed since the time of Cleopatra seems to be the layout of the Eastern Harbour, although a lot of the land has been reclaimed. The Hotel Cecil stands on reclaimed land and just beyond the original location of one of Celopatra's needles, which is currently in Central Park, New York.
It was an extremely illuminating lecture and it was a pleasure to be taken back in time to an era that was more gentle and cultured and "quiet"?
Most of his books that I browsed through seem worth buying. Visit Michael's website on http://www.michaelhaag.com
Although he is from London, he has been visiting Alexandria since 1973, prior to which he already had a lot of friends who had emigrated to the UK from Alexandria. Michael's passion for Alexandria emanates from every photograph and is evident in every word that he speaks.
For today's lecture, he focused on a series of old photographs that he collected from private family albums of long term residents of Alexandria. The pictures in this book span a century- between 1860 and 1960. He showcased 30 of the pictures and told us stories behind each one and took us on a marvelous journey into "Vintage Alexandria"
While the costumes were strange (3 piece suits worn while lounging on the sea shore for example) a lot of the buildings were recognisable. Although some of the buildings were destroyed in the bombing of the Western harbour during World War II and a lot of the buildings have been torn down to give way for new ones.
In Michael's eyes, Alexandria was the ultimate Cosmopolitan city until 1971, because the blend of cultures had not come through occupation or colonialism. The Greeks, Italians and other nationalities who lived in the city for over 150 years had been invited by Mohammed Ali to trade through the Alexandria port.
We saw a lot of previously unseen pictures of Lawrence Durell, Safinaz Zulfikar (later married to King Farouk as Queen Farida), Antony Benaki (the Greek cotton trader whose collection formed the basis of the famous Benaki Museum in Athens), Robert Koch (who isolated the cholera virus and developed a vaccine in an Alexandria laboratory) and other famous Alexandrians.
He showed us a picture of Constantine Cavafy from a business card he had printed and handed over to a friend during her wedding. The funny part was that the picture had been taken 15 years earlier! Cavafy continued to use the same picture for the rest of his life :)
The one thing that hasn't changed since the time of Cleopatra seems to be the layout of the Eastern Harbour, although a lot of the land has been reclaimed. The Hotel Cecil stands on reclaimed land and just beyond the original location of one of Celopatra's needles, which is currently in Central Park, New York.
It was an extremely illuminating lecture and it was a pleasure to be taken back in time to an era that was more gentle and cultured and "quiet"?
Most of his books that I browsed through seem worth buying. Visit Michael's website on http://www.michaelhaag.com
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Flawed Jewel - The Jewel of Medina, a fictionalized version of the life of Lady Aisha
From Egypt Today
Join me in a harsh, exotic world of saffron and sword fights, of desert nomads living in camel’s-hair tents, of caravans laden with Persian carpets and frankincense, of flowing colorful robes and kohl-darkened eyes and perfumed arms filigreed with henna.” . . .
A very well written critique with valid debate points. Do read the original review here on Egypt Today
| October 2008 Flawed Jewel The Jewel of Medina, a fictionalized version of the life of Lady Aisha, has reopened the debate on portraying Islam’s sacred figures By Ethar El-Katatney |
A very well written critique with valid debate points. Do read the original review here on Egypt Today
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Book Review : Diplomatic Baggage: The Adventures of a Trailing Spouse
As a Trailing Spouse to Egypt, this was a book recommended at an Inter-cultural training session that I attended.
I am glad I waited 2 years to read this book (I might have been terrified of the move) although I'm kicking myself for spending money on it, even though I got it at a discounted price on Amazon.
I got carried away by William Dalrymple's (an author I greatly admire) review of it: "Brigid Keenan, is a new comic genius.... very, very funny"
Later in the book, I figured out that he spent time at their house in Damascus, while researching his book From the Holy Mountain.
Why did I hate the book so much?
Except for the last chapter, the author was constantly whining and groaning about the hardships that life had tossed at her. This after choosing to marry her husband of her own free will, knowing the kind of job he did and loved would take him to obtuse corners of the world. It was a fully informed decision that she took. Even spending some days with him, in what she calls a "chicken shed" in Kathmandu before deciding to marry him.
She constantly whines about everything from the help, to the kids, to her husband, to location.... in short, she whines about Everything.
The life of a Diplomatic Trailing Spouse is much easier than that of other Trailing Spouses. Accommodation, household help, office help, everything is put in place before the diplomatic family even arrives at their new location. Brigid's grouse is that some of the other European embassies provide more services to the spouses than her husbands European Commission ambassadors office does.
She promotes herself as a glamorous, successful young London fashion journalist, but later in the book accepts and acknowledges that her children were the worst dressed in their school.
I do not know Brigid personally, but what I read in her this autobiography of hers, made me think of her as a spoiled, over indulged wife who can never find anything positive and good in life.
Granted she had a few scares like the maggots that got under the skin and had to mature and grow and eat their way out, but those kind of experiences were less than you could count on one hand. For the most part, she was preoccupied with how to find whit gloves for a 6 fingered servant in India and wondering why there was no association to put beggars to sleep the way Animal friends does it for animals! At the same time brushing aside her daughters experiences with pedophiles and exposers as casual asides.
Brigid has written about Kashmir's art and crafts and co authored a book on Damascus; which may be worth looking at, but Diplomatic Baggage is not a book you want to buy or gift a friend who is going to be a Trailing Spouse, not unless you want them to cancel all plans and send their spouse to live abroad on their own.
Published on desicritics.org
Monday, June 30, 2008
Book Review : Cherry Bomb
The entire title Reads - Cherry Bomb : The Ultimate Guide to becoming a Better Flirt, a Tougher Chick and a Hotter Girlfriend, And to Living Life like a Rockstar
I don't read "how-to" books, but the title for this one by Carrie Borzillo-Vrenna had me intrigued and itching to get my hands on it, to read more.
Carrie Borzillo-Vrenna has been a music and entertainment journalist since the last 20 years and is best known for her books on Nirvana and Kurt Cobain, her sex and relationship advice column “Dr. Love” for the Gene Simmons Tongue magazine and her music related articles in People, Billboard, Spin, RollingStone.com and Alternative Press magazines.
The title "Cherry Bomb" comes from the song by Joan Jett of The Runaways. Carrie says "Joan Jett's attitude, style and music has always inspired me so I'm happy to reference the Runaways song (in the title) even if some younger people won't know what it means right away. That's ok because cherries are sweet and bombs are badass and the book is all about being a sweet badass! To me, those two words, sum up the book nicely and it's a killer song to boot!"
Cherry Bomb is an alphabetized reference from Absinthe (the new Drink of Choice for the Rock and roll set) to Zig Zags (The Cool Way to Roll a Joint) with Celebrity Pick-up tips, Fetishes, Infidelity Pacts, Orgasms, Piercings, Strip Tease and Tour Bus Etiquette in between .
The tips and techniques are invaluable to a rock chick. There are tips and detailed instructions on how to tie a cherry stem into a knot (using just your mouth- no hands), how to get backstage without being a whore, using bottle service to buy VIP status at the hottest nightclubs, how to perform a striptease (by Burlesque star - Ditta Von Teese) The tips are practical and easily doable, no matter who you are or what kind of budget you are on.
Being in the music industry as a writer and as a wife to a Grammy winning Rockstar - Chris Vrenna who plays keyboards with Marilyn Manson and drums with Gnarls Barkley- Carrie is more than qualified to write this guide. Most of the tips come from her own real life experiences. For the few areas that she did not have first hand experience with when she started writing, she enlisted the help of her celebrity friends including
Cherie Currie of THE RUNAWAYS (on "Cherry Bomb," the song that influenced the book)
Tori Amos (Life Advice)
Betsey Johnson (Breast Cancer Awareness and Personal Style)
Anna Sui (Fashion Inspiration)
Dancing with the Stars' Cheryl Burke (Dancing Tips)
Celeb hairstylist Dean Banowetz (Rockin' Up 'Dos)
Master Chef Dave Rubell (Black Vodka Recipes)
and Stylist Cynthia Freund (Rock Chick Style Tips) among others.
My favorite guest how-to chapter is the one by Peaches' drummer Samantha Maloney on how to play the Drums. It re-ignited an old flame and I just might be inspired enough to go out and get myself into classes and buy myself a drum set. My favorite chapters by Carrie are Jet Setting, Jobs, Money and Networking.
I always thought I had a more than fair knowledge about rock music and rock stars, but on reading Carrie's book, I know I have a lot more to learn and a lot more musicians that I need to listen to at least once. Her list of songs at the end of some chapters seems to be a good place to start. The lists are mood based - songs to Vacuum fast To (the Anger Stage), songs to Eat a Pint of Ice Cream to (the Depression Stage), Funk Fixers etc.
For the Relationship kinda quiz addicts, there are a couple of quizzes as well, to check if you are rockstar girlfriend material and which rock chick you are most like.
The illustrations by Liz Adams are apt and cute (not a word you would associate with rock, but thats truly what they are.)
There is something for everyone in this book. Men can find a lot of the chapters interesting and relevant too. The title hooked my husband and he browsed through the book and loved what he read.
You don't need to be in the rock industry or dating a rock star to use these tips. These tips are great for any independent, confident woman who is comfortable with herself and who she is. From a gangly pre-teen to a grandmother in her 60's, any woman with self assurance can find something of value in this guide and for someone who lacks self assurance, Cherry Bomb is a great place to start.
This book is due for release on the 5th of August 2008 and can be pre-ordered on Amazon. For anyone who has ever been interested in the lives of Rock Stars and been envious of their lifestyle, this book is a definite must-buy as it shows you step by simple step how to lead their life with panache and confidence. Cherry Bomb delivers on all its promises and does impart relevant and easy to follow tips on how to become a better flirt, tougher chick and hotter girlfriend.
Published on desicritics.org
I don't read "how-to" books, but the title for this one by Carrie Borzillo-Vrenna had me intrigued and itching to get my hands on it, to read more.
Carrie Borzillo-Vrenna has been a music and entertainment journalist since the last 20 years and is best known for her books on Nirvana and Kurt Cobain, her sex and relationship advice column “Dr. Love” for the Gene Simmons Tongue magazine and her music related articles in People, Billboard, Spin, RollingStone.com and Alternative Press magazines.The title "Cherry Bomb" comes from the song by Joan Jett of The Runaways. Carrie says "Joan Jett's attitude, style and music has always inspired me so I'm happy to reference the Runaways song (in the title) even if some younger people won't know what it means right away. That's ok because cherries are sweet and bombs are badass and the book is all about being a sweet badass! To me, those two words, sum up the book nicely and it's a killer song to boot!"
Cherry Bomb is an alphabetized reference from Absinthe (the new Drink of Choice for the Rock and roll set) to Zig Zags (The Cool Way to Roll a Joint) with Celebrity Pick-up tips, Fetishes, Infidelity Pacts, Orgasms, Piercings, Strip Tease and Tour Bus Etiquette in between .
The tips and techniques are invaluable to a rock chick. There are tips and detailed instructions on how to tie a cherry stem into a knot (using just your mouth- no hands), how to get backstage without being a whore, using bottle service to buy VIP status at the hottest nightclubs, how to perform a striptease (by Burlesque star - Ditta Von Teese) The tips are practical and easily doable, no matter who you are or what kind of budget you are on.
Being in the music industry as a writer and as a wife to a Grammy winning Rockstar - Chris Vrenna who plays keyboards with Marilyn Manson and drums with Gnarls Barkley- Carrie is more than qualified to write this guide. Most of the tips come from her own real life experiences. For the few areas that she did not have first hand experience with when she started writing, she enlisted the help of her celebrity friends including
Cherie Currie of THE RUNAWAYS (on "Cherry Bomb," the song that influenced the book)
Tori Amos (Life Advice)
Betsey Johnson (Breast Cancer Awareness and Personal Style)
Anna Sui (Fashion Inspiration)
Dancing with the Stars' Cheryl Burke (Dancing Tips)
Celeb hairstylist Dean Banowetz (Rockin' Up 'Dos)
Master Chef Dave Rubell (Black Vodka Recipes)
and Stylist Cynthia Freund (Rock Chick Style Tips) among others.
My favorite guest how-to chapter is the one by Peaches' drummer Samantha Maloney on how to play the Drums. It re-ignited an old flame and I just might be inspired enough to go out and get myself into classes and buy myself a drum set. My favorite chapters by Carrie are Jet Setting, Jobs, Money and Networking.
I always thought I had a more than fair knowledge about rock music and rock stars, but on reading Carrie's book, I know I have a lot more to learn and a lot more musicians that I need to listen to at least once. Her list of songs at the end of some chapters seems to be a good place to start. The lists are mood based - songs to Vacuum fast To (the Anger Stage), songs to Eat a Pint of Ice Cream to (the Depression Stage), Funk Fixers etc.
For the Relationship kinda quiz addicts, there are a couple of quizzes as well, to check if you are rockstar girlfriend material and which rock chick you are most like.
The illustrations by Liz Adams are apt and cute (not a word you would associate with rock, but thats truly what they are.)
There is something for everyone in this book. Men can find a lot of the chapters interesting and relevant too. The title hooked my husband and he browsed through the book and loved what he read.
You don't need to be in the rock industry or dating a rock star to use these tips. These tips are great for any independent, confident woman who is comfortable with herself and who she is. From a gangly pre-teen to a grandmother in her 60's, any woman with self assurance can find something of value in this guide and for someone who lacks self assurance, Cherry Bomb is a great place to start.
This book is due for release on the 5th of August 2008 and can be pre-ordered on Amazon. For anyone who has ever been interested in the lives of Rock Stars and been envious of their lifestyle, this book is a definite must-buy as it shows you step by simple step how to lead their life with panache and confidence. Cherry Bomb delivers on all its promises and does impart relevant and easy to follow tips on how to become a better flirt, tougher chick and hotter girlfriend.
Published on desicritics.org
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Childrens books in Arabic - in Cairo
Granted with no kids of my own, I don't have too much insight into this, but I do know my bookshops
And a lot of this information comes as tips from friends in Egypt who would like their kids to learn to read Arabic just to make the transition easier.
1. The best place/time to find them is at the Cairo International Book fair because publishers from other Arab countries that don't have stores/distribution in Egypt sell their stuff there.
2. Dar el Shorouk publishes Arabic books for children and sells them at their outlets in the Four Seasons First Mall, City Stars Mall (the extension), and Korba. Their kids section in Arabic is one of the strongest around town.
Shorouk publishes series of books from Alam Simsim (sesame street), the Mister books (Mister Happy etc), Miffy and more. There are Barney story books and other famous characters as well. Someone mentioned that the new series by Shorouk are in Egyptian Arabic, but printed in China. Books start from about 10LE each.
3. The lovely ladies at The Bookspot, don't always carry Arabic books, but they do special order them so if you have something specific in mind they can always get it for you.
4. Diwan carries a few too, but its a limited selection.
5. Carre four & Hyper One have some Arabic Childrens books in their Books & Magazine sections.
Surprisingly, a lot of my friends have found better range and quality of Arabic books for children outside Egypt.
And a lot of this information comes as tips from friends in Egypt who would like their kids to learn to read Arabic just to make the transition easier.
1. The best place/time to find them is at the Cairo International Book fair because publishers from other Arab countries that don't have stores/distribution in Egypt sell their stuff there.
2. Dar el Shorouk publishes Arabic books for children and sells them at their outlets in the Four Seasons First Mall, City Stars Mall (the extension), and Korba. Their kids section in Arabic is one of the strongest around town.
Shorouk publishes series of books from Alam Simsim (sesame street), the Mister books (Mister Happy etc), Miffy and more. There are Barney story books and other famous characters as well. Someone mentioned that the new series by Shorouk are in Egyptian Arabic, but printed in China. Books start from about 10LE each.
3. The lovely ladies at The Bookspot, don't always carry Arabic books, but they do special order them so if you have something specific in mind they can always get it for you.
4. Diwan carries a few too, but its a limited selection.
5. Carre four & Hyper One have some Arabic Childrens books in their Books & Magazine sections.
Surprisingly, a lot of my friends have found better range and quality of Arabic books for children outside Egypt.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Robert Fisk: The curious case of the forged biography
From The Independent
When Robert Fisk heard that his life of Saddam Hussein was selling well, one thing bothered him: he had never written one. His investigation took him to the murkiest corners of Cairo.
Friday, 1 February 2008
It arrived for me in Beirut under plain cover, a brown envelope containing a small, glossy paperback in Arabic, accompanied by a note from an Egyptian friend. "Robert!" it began. "Did you really write this?"
The front cover bore a photograph of Saddam Hussein in the dock in Baghdad, the left side of his head in colour, the right side bleached out, wearing a black sports jacket but with no tie, holding a Koran in his right hand. "Saddam Hussein," the cover said in huge letters. "From Birth to Martyrdom." And then there was the author's name – in beautiful, calligraphic typeface and in gold in the top, right-hand corner. "By Robert Fisk."
When Robert Fisk heard that his life of Saddam Hussein was selling well, one thing bothered him: he had never written one. His investigation took him to the murkiest corners of Cairo.
Friday, 1 February 2008
It arrived for me in Beirut under plain cover, a brown envelope containing a small, glossy paperback in Arabic, accompanied by a note from an Egyptian friend. "Robert!" it began. "Did you really write this?"
The front cover bore a photograph of Saddam Hussein in the dock in Baghdad, the left side of his head in colour, the right side bleached out, wearing a black sports jacket but with no tie, holding a Koran in his right hand. "Saddam Hussein," the cover said in huge letters. "From Birth to Martyrdom." And then there was the author's name – in beautiful, calligraphic typeface and in gold in the top, right-hand corner. "By Robert Fisk."
Robert Fisk, right, with 'Mahmoud', who said that he had sold 100 copies of the forged biography in his Cairo bookshop
So there it was, 272 paperback pages on the life and times of the Hitler of Baghdad and selling very well in the Egyptian capital. "We all suspect a well-known man here," she added. "His name is Magdi Chukri."
Needless to say, I noticed one or two problems with this book. It took a very lenient view of the brutality of Saddam, it didn't seem to care much about the gassed civilians of Halabja – and it was full of the kind of purple passages which I loathe. "After the American rejection of the Iraqi weapons report to the UN," 'Robert Fisk' wrote, "the beating of war drums turned into a cacophony..."
Dare I suggest to readers that this kind of cliche doesn't sound like Robert Fisk? The only war drums I could hear were those of my own astonishment. For I never wrote this book. It wasn't plagiarism – a common practice in Cairo, which is why I ensure that all my real books are legally published in Arabic in Lebanon. No, this wasn't plagiarism. This was forgery.
And it was clearly the moment for Detective Inspector Fisk to hunt down "The Mystery of the Cairo Forger". Elementary, my dear reader, which is why I boarded Middle East Airlines flight ME304 from Beirut to my least favourite Arab capital, the bureaucratic, traffic-snarled, bankrupt, wonderful, lawless, irredeemable, spectacular Cairo.
I had called an Egyptian journalist friend, Saef Nasrawi, to be my Dr Watson and – a few metres from the front door of the Marriott Gezira Hotel – we found our faithful driver, Yasser Hassan. "Make sure you put my family name in your newspaper," he announced. I have now done so.
It's always been my theory that a taxi driver – especially in Cairo – will be more helpful, more friendly and altogether more enthusiastic if he knows why you're in the back of his cab. So, when I showed him the slim paperback, he raced off at once to what we all hoped was the office of the publisher, clearly printed on page two. "Ibda" the company was supposedly called and the Egyptian telephone operator had traced the name to an address in Old Cairo, No 953 Corniche el-Nil.
Through the downtown morning traffic, we ground, canyons of black and white taxis like our own; vast, single-storey buses packed with Galabiya-clad and bearded men; 4x4s carrying Cairo's demimonde of jewelled ladies and young men with shaving problems – the bewhiskered chin-for machismo is as much a problem in the Middle East as it is in London.
No 953 was a tall tenement block into which Saef and I could not penetrate without the permission of a black-cowled lady whose child was playing in the dust of the roadway. She listened as we called upstairs. Yes, a woman's voice said. We could take the elevator. On the wall beside the lift was a sign: "Ibda – the house of creativity for journalism, publication and distribution". I could believe in the "creativity" bit.
But the veiled and polite lady on the 11th floor was all ignorance. "We never published such a book," she said, and called her female boss, who was at the Cairo Book Fair. She called us back on our mobile and insisted – quite truthfully – that Saddam Hussein was not her work. Not only did she deny all knowledge of the forgery – her assistant weighed us down with her own genuinely produced books of literary endeavour.
Saef and Yasser debated our problem. The publishing details in the front of the book were clearly wrong. But the frontispiece announced that the book had been registered for circulation with the Egyptian government – in other words, it has been cleared for sale by the official censor. So, Detective Inspector Fisk decided that a visit to the Dar al-Kutb – the official "House of Books" attached to the Ministry of Culture – was our next destination. Had the forger, the so-called Magdi Chukri, been smooth enough to legalise his illegally produced book with the oh-so-law-abiding Egyptian government of President Hosni Mubarak?
"This is not good enough!" our driver, Yasser, roared at me. "Mr Robert, the people of Egypt will think you wrote this book. You must go to the British embassy, you must go to the Egyptian government, you must go to the police, you must go to our intelligence services." I had been through this kind of trust curtain before. Despite all evidence to the contrary, Egyptians still evince a blind confidence in Ottoman authority.
The Brits wouldn't care a damn about this forgery and the Egyptians even less – always supposing "Magdi Chukri" hadn't slipped the civil servants a few piastas for registering a book by "Robert Fisk".
We arrived at the Ministry of Culture, a bleak Stalinist office block next door to which we found "House of Books". On the first floor was an emporium – I hesitate to call it an office – of books, a vast atrium of volumes and manuscripts. They lay feet high on desks, metre high on shelves and – so it seemed – miles high from the floor. Hundreds, nay thousands, of books were stacked in Dickensian rows, floor to ceiling, bodice-rippers and Arabic fiction and treatises on Islamic jurisprudence and physics textbooks. Two veiled ladies and two bearded men sat at a desk amid this forest of literature, one of them – there is always a miracle in Cairo – in front of a grimy, faded-yellow desktop computer.
I asked if my favourite volume had been approved by the Egyptian government for sale. "By Robert Fisk?" the man asked.
"The very one!" I shouted.
"Yes, it was registered with us on 30 May 2007."
"Is there a name for the man who wanted to register it?"
"No, only an address. 13 Hassan Ramadan Street in Dokki."
Within seconds, Detective Inspector Fisk was bounding down the stairs, his faithful Dr Saef Watson on his heels. "To Dokki!" we demanded of the delighted Yasser. Now, surely, we were hot on the trail of the Forger of Cairo. A chance at last to confront Mr Magdi.
The problem – which all three of us realised – is that Magdi Chukri is about as common in Cairo as John Smith is in Britain.
There must be hundreds of thousands of Magdi Chukris in Egypt – one of whom is a former Egyptian foreign minister, a man of great probity who would never forge a book –which is probably why the writer chose the name.
We turned left into an evil-smelling alleyway – Hassan Ramadan Street – and stopped outside No 13. It was an underground mosque. Not only was it underground but, when Saef and I tried to enter the building, the wailed prayers of a funeral ascended from the basement.
A helpful bo'ab – all Egyptian buildings possess a doorman – arrived to insist that no publisher lived in the leaning, mud-brick tenement behind the mosque. "I know all these people," he said, pointing to each heavily-hung washing line. "These are the Wassiss, there are the Salmans ..."
At which point an elderly lady in spectacles, dressed in a smart black and white business suit, emerged from a stairway. No, she told Saef, there were no publishers here. "But there used to be that nice Mr Magdi Chukri."
"Magdi Chukri?!"
"Yes, but he moved out a year ago [before he registered his false address with the government, the Detective Inspector's computer brain worked out] and now he works at the branch of Mgboulli's bookshop around the corner."
Neither Holmes nor Watson ever moved so fast. Saef, Yasser and I hooted and screamed the wrong way out of Hassan Ramadan Street, donkey riders tight-eyed with hatred as we tooted them off the road. Only one thing mattered now. Number 45 Al-Batal Ahmed Abdul-Aziz Street, the local Mgboulli bookshop.
And there it was, its window packed with paperbacks, the "G" and "U" of Mgboulli having long ago fallen to the pavement.
There was a slim, cigarette-smoking Egyptian in a yellow smoking jacket with black velvet lapels blocking the doorway. "I want to buy a book," I said softly, the winning smile – I'm afraid – of an undercover policeman suffusing my face. There were two tough, beefy men inside, shop assistants as you've never seen them before. I asked for a well-known volume on the life of Saddam Hussein.
"By Robert Fisk?" I was asked.
"Why yes, the very one!"
I followed one of the beefy men upstairs to the "Saddam Hussein biography" section. At which point, he darted back downstairs and retrieved the book from a secret pile behind the counter. "Thirty Egyptian pounds," he said. I paid. Yes, I paid the equivalent of £2.86 for a book with my name on it which I never wrote.
The man in the yellow jacket - he now introduced himself as "Mahmoud" – asked me why I wanted to buy this particular tome. "Because this is my name on the cover," I said. "And here is my business card. I never wrote this book."
"Mahmoud" and the two beefy men burst into laughter. So did Saef. So did I. For this was a ticklish moment. Did "Mahmoud" know "Magdi Chukri", I asked?
"Yes, he is a good friend of mine. But he left us some time ago and now he lives in 6th October City. Here is his number." I called it. Switched off. There was another number. A woman answered, refused to give her name or address and hung up. "Mahmoud" shrugged.
"How many copies of this book have you sold," I asked.
"Mahmoud" drew on his cigarette. "At least 100 so far."
"So you owe me 3,000 Egyptian pounds!" I was enjoying this.
"But, no, Mr Robert, we don't owe you this," "Mahmoud" said with a cringing smile. "Because you have just told me you didn't write this book. How can we pay you for a book you did not write?"
Why did I like "Mahmoud"? Why did I love this moment?
Was it possible to find Mr Chukri in 6th October City? Could we perhaps go street by street to hunt him down?
Saef leaned over my shoulder. "Mr Robert, about nine million people live in 6th October City."
I got the message. Clutching my second copy of "Robert Fisk's' biography of Saddam Hussein" – Yasser was delighted to receive it as a gift – I left Mgboulli's and returned to the Marriott. That night, I sat upon my hotel balcony and looked across the fume-encrusted minarets and the black tide of the Nile to the twinkling lights of 6th October City.
Far out there in the darkness, "Magdi Chukri" must be working on another historical volume.
What will be its title, I wondered? And which author's name will grace the front cover in gold?
Monday, October 22, 2007
Book Review : Cairo Maps : The Practical Guide & Other Excellent Maps for Cairo
Cairo Maps : The Practical Guide
Published by The American University in Cairo Press It used to cost 30LE, but if my information is right, the price has now increased to 45LE.
If you plan to use only one map in Cairo, then this is the one to buy. It may not be as detailed as some other maps that you may have used in other countries or Google maps, but it’s the best and most detailed that is available for Cairo city.
You can't expect building numbers and one way directions (since they keep changing daily in Cairo) but what you can expect is all the roads being named and the major hotels and tourist spots are marked. There is a 1 page map of the Cairo Metro system and one comprehensive single-pager of the Ring Road. At 58 pages, it’s a pretty slim map for the city, but as I said before - it’s the best you can buy.
The Palm Press Map Guide to Maadi & Old Cairo
If you live in Maadi, then this may be THE map for you. Its an Arabic/English bilingual map. The Index covers telephone numbers of some restaurants, hospitals, travel agencies and other essential services. The map also details snippets of history of some of the marked places. This is a large 70x100cm map in a card sleeve.
The Palm Press also advertises a similar map for Heliopolis (70x100cm) and Zamalek (70x50cm), but I haven't seen them yet.
Cairo - A-Z Complete Street Finder
I haven't used this one but I've liked their other maps. They advertise this one as : Cairo A-Z includes over 150 pages of colour maps, a 6000-street index, revised and updated and new Cairo Guide.
It is the fourth edition of our full-color complete streetfinder of greater Cairo. It includes details of the Islamic monuments, a brief guide for the visitor and a 36-page section of useful addresses and telephone numbers. It is the most detailed and up-to-date map of the Egyptian capital ever published.
The SPARE maps of Medieval Cairo
(Designed by The Palm Press)
Series of 4 maps for the Society for the Protection of Architectural Resources of Egypt (SPARE) covers the tourist interest sections of Old Cairo or Medieval Cairo as they are named. These are about 10LE each.
Map 1 : From the North Walls to Al Azhar (includes guide map to Khan al Khalili Bazaar)
Map 2 : From al Azhar to Sultan Hassan
Map 3 : From the Citadel to Ibn tulun (with map of the Citadel)
Map 4 : The Northern Cemetery (City of the Dead) and Coptic Cairo (includes Amr mosque & Nilometer)
These 4 maps are schematic and only identify the major places of tourist interest. They also give a little history of each of these monuments along with details on the dynasty during which they were constructed. They can help you cover the basics, but as I've learnt from my PTP walks, its up to you to walk into other buildings that look interesting to you along the way.
All these maps are available at most of the Major Bookshops in this City
You can also pick up plenty of free maps at the city's coffee shops which are pretty good, if all you need is an orientation into the major areas and the major roads.
There are other maps out there, (like the Insight Guides flexi map to Cairo which is very good for rough use since it comes prelaminated) but these are the ones that I use after selecting them from the bookshops that I frequent. If you have any other maps that you think are worth recommending, please do add them below in the comments section.
Published by The American University in Cairo Press It used to cost 30LE, but if my information is right, the price has now increased to 45LE.
If you plan to use only one map in Cairo, then this is the one to buy. It may not be as detailed as some other maps that you may have used in other countries or Google maps, but it’s the best and most detailed that is available for Cairo city.
You can't expect building numbers and one way directions (since they keep changing daily in Cairo) but what you can expect is all the roads being named and the major hotels and tourist spots are marked. There is a 1 page map of the Cairo Metro system and one comprehensive single-pager of the Ring Road. At 58 pages, it’s a pretty slim map for the city, but as I said before - it’s the best you can buy.
The Palm Press Map Guide to Maadi & Old Cairo
If you live in Maadi, then this may be THE map for you. Its an Arabic/English bilingual map. The Index covers telephone numbers of some restaurants, hospitals, travel agencies and other essential services. The map also details snippets of history of some of the marked places. This is a large 70x100cm map in a card sleeve.
The Palm Press also advertises a similar map for Heliopolis (70x100cm) and Zamalek (70x50cm), but I haven't seen them yet.
Cairo - A-Z Complete Street Finder
I haven't used this one but I've liked their other maps. They advertise this one as : Cairo A-Z includes over 150 pages of colour maps, a 6000-street index, revised and updated and new Cairo Guide.
It is the fourth edition of our full-color complete streetfinder of greater Cairo. It includes details of the Islamic monuments, a brief guide for the visitor and a 36-page section of useful addresses and telephone numbers. It is the most detailed and up-to-date map of the Egyptian capital ever published.
The SPARE maps of Medieval Cairo
(Designed by The Palm Press)
Series of 4 maps for the Society for the Protection of Architectural Resources of Egypt (SPARE) covers the tourist interest sections of Old Cairo or Medieval Cairo as they are named. These are about 10LE each.
Map 1 : From the North Walls to Al Azhar (includes guide map to Khan al Khalili Bazaar)
Map 2 : From al Azhar to Sultan Hassan
Map 3 : From the Citadel to Ibn tulun (with map of the Citadel)
Map 4 : The Northern Cemetery (City of the Dead) and Coptic Cairo (includes Amr mosque & Nilometer)
These 4 maps are schematic and only identify the major places of tourist interest. They also give a little history of each of these monuments along with details on the dynasty during which they were constructed. They can help you cover the basics, but as I've learnt from my PTP walks, its up to you to walk into other buildings that look interesting to you along the way.
All these maps are available at most of the Major Bookshops in this City
You can also pick up plenty of free maps at the city's coffee shops which are pretty good, if all you need is an orientation into the major areas and the major roads.
There are other maps out there, (like the Insight Guides flexi map to Cairo which is very good for rough use since it comes prelaminated) but these are the ones that I use after selecting them from the bookshops that I frequent. If you have any other maps that you think are worth recommending, please do add them below in the comments section.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Book Review : Cairo - The Family Guide
In a previous article, "Bookshops in Cairo" I heavily recommended this book, but I never mentioned why.
The current issue of the Cairo Family Guide is the 4th edition (the first edition was in 2001). It has been revised each time to update the data and make it more current & relevant.
Its written by Lesley Lababidi in collaboration with Dr Lisa Sabbahy and printed by the AUC Press
Its one book any person planning to check out the sights of Cairo on their own, or living here for more than a week should most certainly pick up.
The book is categorised location wise and then each place worth a visit in that area is listed out with complete details.
For eg. there are 3 different itineraries for the Egyptian museum depending on a person's interest. It also helps split the museum into manageable trips so as to be able to absorb maximum information.
Special attention has been given to understanding and recommending activities based on a child's age and interests. So the book is especially handy for those visiting with kids.
Maps to the areas, the closest Metro stop, the timings (including changed timings for Ramadan), Entrance fees (for foreigners, residents, students & Egyptians - yes there are multiple rates), Photography and video fees if any, (or whether they are allowed at all), the telephone numbers to that location, facilities available (bathrooms, gift shops, cafeterias) the best place to park (this is a major issue in Cairo), relevant websites if any, activities organised at that location if any, how much to tip and whom. These are just some of the gems of information that she shares about each and every location.
This is a goldmine of information especially given the monumental difficulty of gathering such data in Cairo. This is one of our few books where the book has completely lost its crispness (I don't even like the spine cracking in my books)
The only drawback is that since this is a 2006 edition some of the data has become obsolete especially with the recent adding of a digit to all land-line numbers at some of the telephone exchanges. Some sites have revised their charges (upwards of course) But the changes would hardly be in 5% of the data in this book.
So go ahead and pick up your own copy today. At 70LE it's a steal! Make sure it is a blue coloured bind with the picture of children sitting in a donkey cart. This is the latest edition. Many smaller bookshops still stock the older versions with the green colour binding. The information in those would be about 25-30% irrelevant and/or obsolete.
Be sure to pick up this one : not this one
I'll review the practical guide (the second one) in a day or so.
You can buy it at any major bookstore in Egypt. Its one of the most popular books. Or even buy it off Amazon.
I plan to write a lot about the sights in Egypt in the coming week, I will be heavily referencing this book.
The current issue of the Cairo Family Guide is the 4th edition (the first edition was in 2001). It has been revised each time to update the data and make it more current & relevant.
Its written by Lesley Lababidi in collaboration with Dr Lisa Sabbahy and printed by the AUC Press
Its one book any person planning to check out the sights of Cairo on their own, or living here for more than a week should most certainly pick up.
The book is categorised location wise and then each place worth a visit in that area is listed out with complete details.
For eg. there are 3 different itineraries for the Egyptian museum depending on a person's interest. It also helps split the museum into manageable trips so as to be able to absorb maximum information.
Special attention has been given to understanding and recommending activities based on a child's age and interests. So the book is especially handy for those visiting with kids.
Maps to the areas, the closest Metro stop, the timings (including changed timings for Ramadan), Entrance fees (for foreigners, residents, students & Egyptians - yes there are multiple rates), Photography and video fees if any, (or whether they are allowed at all), the telephone numbers to that location, facilities available (bathrooms, gift shops, cafeterias) the best place to park (this is a major issue in Cairo), relevant websites if any, activities organised at that location if any, how much to tip and whom. These are just some of the gems of information that she shares about each and every location.
This is a goldmine of information especially given the monumental difficulty of gathering such data in Cairo. This is one of our few books where the book has completely lost its crispness (I don't even like the spine cracking in my books)
The only drawback is that since this is a 2006 edition some of the data has become obsolete especially with the recent adding of a digit to all land-line numbers at some of the telephone exchanges. Some sites have revised their charges (upwards of course) But the changes would hardly be in 5% of the data in this book.
So go ahead and pick up your own copy today. At 70LE it's a steal! Make sure it is a blue coloured bind with the picture of children sitting in a donkey cart. This is the latest edition. Many smaller bookshops still stock the older versions with the green colour binding. The information in those would be about 25-30% irrelevant and/or obsolete.
Be sure to pick up this one : not this one
I'll review the practical guide (the second one) in a day or so.
You can buy it at any major bookstore in Egypt. Its one of the most popular books. Or even buy it off Amazon.
I plan to write a lot about the sights in Egypt in the coming week, I will be heavily referencing this book.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Magazines to subscribe to in Egypt
There are tons of magazines that are printed in Egypt in Arabic & English. Many new printing companies start up a new publication every day & an equal number of them shut shop everyday.
There are links to a lot of magazines in the right hand section of this blog, under the headings "Egyptian Newspapers" and "Egyptian Magazines".
Magazines that are printed in Egypt are frequently distributed free of charge at coffee shops and other "youth hangout" locations.
The ones that I love and personally recommend (in no particular order) are :
1. Egypt Today : A well written magazine to let you know what is going on in town. Lots of current events, well researched articles, profiles of locals who are great at their fields of interest but not very well known. You can expect all this and more from this magazine.
You can view the latest online copy & archives at http://egypttoday.com/
You can subscribe to the magazine online or pick them up individually from a variety of bookstores. It costs 15LE per copy or 96 LE (as quoted on the site, the latest magazine copy quotes 135LE ) for an annual subscription.
2. Business Today : A sister publication of Egypt Today. This covers the Business developments in Egypt. Reviews into existing businesses, interviews with the movers and shakers in the corporate world among others. They also have an annual bt100 ranking of companies based in Egypt.
You can view the latest online copy & archives at http://businesstodayegypt.com/
You can subscribe to the magazine online or pick them up individually from a variety of bookstores. It costs 15LE per copy or 96 LE (as quoted on the site, the latest magazine copy quotes 135LE ) for an annual subscription.
3. Business Monthly : A free magazine brought out by the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt. The insight is American Oriented and the articles are extremely thoroughly researched. This is a more technical magazine than Business Today.
You can check the archives online at http://www.amcham.org.eg/Publications/BusinessMonthly/Business_Monthly.asp
You can also sign up for your free subscription at http://www.amcham.org.eg/Publications/BusinessMonthly/Subscription/Subscribe.asp. It will be delivered to you free of charge into the comfort of your home.
4. Community Times : A lovely fun magazine to read. Although they have been advertising their website for over a year, it still isn't functional :) But the magazine is very good. It covers a wide variety of subjects that anyone living in Cairo would be interested in. It has a huge event listing at the back along with a restaurant listing etc.
It used to be available on sale for 10LE at the big supermarkets, but now it seems to be restricted to some major bookshops & some restaurants. It is available free of charge at some of the bigger cafes in town. But I would recommend that you subscribe to it to ensure you get your monthly dose.
Edited on 19 May 08 to add: Website is now functional and visible at http://www.ct-egypt.com/
5. The Croc :Available free of charge at multiple locations around the city including cafes & BCA. It gives you a brief on the events coming up in the month. A nice list of restaurants, cafes & bars with recommendations on what to eat there and little notes about the ambiance at times.
Its tiny, pocket size so worth carrying around in your purse for those moments when you are hungry in a different part of town and can't decide where to eat or suddenly find yourself with a free evening & longing for a dose of culture !
6. The Oasis : a free magazine published by the CSA (Community Services Association) in Maadi. The article content isnt high but it has a lot of ads for services in Maadi that can be extremely helpful. Pick up your free copy at the CSA centre on Road 21.
7. The BCA Chronicle : An excellent resource for expats. Lots of relevant articles. More articles than ads, unlike the Oasis. Pick up your free copy from the BCA clubhouses.
There are links to a lot of magazines in the right hand section of this blog, under the headings "Egyptian Newspapers" and "Egyptian Magazines".
Magazines that are printed in Egypt are frequently distributed free of charge at coffee shops and other "youth hangout" locations.
The ones that I love and personally recommend (in no particular order) are :
1. Egypt Today : A well written magazine to let you know what is going on in town. Lots of current events, well researched articles, profiles of locals who are great at their fields of interest but not very well known. You can expect all this and more from this magazine.
You can view the latest online copy & archives at http://egypttoday.com/
You can subscribe to the magazine online or pick them up individually from a variety of bookstores. It costs 15LE per copy or 96 LE (as quoted on the site, the latest magazine copy quotes 135LE ) for an annual subscription.
2. Business Today : A sister publication of Egypt Today. This covers the Business developments in Egypt. Reviews into existing businesses, interviews with the movers and shakers in the corporate world among others. They also have an annual bt100 ranking of companies based in Egypt.
You can view the latest online copy & archives at http://businesstodayegypt.com/
You can subscribe to the magazine online or pick them up individually from a variety of bookstores. It costs 15LE per copy or 96 LE (as quoted on the site, the latest magazine copy quotes 135LE ) for an annual subscription.
3. Business Monthly : A free magazine brought out by the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt. The insight is American Oriented and the articles are extremely thoroughly researched. This is a more technical magazine than Business Today.
You can check the archives online at http://www.amcham.org.eg/Publications/BusinessMonthly/Business_Monthly.asp
You can also sign up for your free subscription at http://www.amcham.org.eg/Publications/BusinessMonthly/Subscription/Subscribe.asp. It will be delivered to you free of charge into the comfort of your home.
4. Community Times : A lovely fun magazine to read. Although they have been advertising their website for over a year, it still isn't functional :) But the magazine is very good. It covers a wide variety of subjects that anyone living in Cairo would be interested in. It has a huge event listing at the back along with a restaurant listing etc.
It used to be available on sale for 10LE at the big supermarkets, but now it seems to be restricted to some major bookshops & some restaurants. It is available free of charge at some of the bigger cafes in town. But I would recommend that you subscribe to it to ensure you get your monthly dose.
Edited on 19 May 08 to add: Website is now functional and visible at http://www.ct-egypt.com/
5. The Croc :Available free of charge at multiple locations around the city including cafes & BCA. It gives you a brief on the events coming up in the month. A nice list of restaurants, cafes & bars with recommendations on what to eat there and little notes about the ambiance at times.
Its tiny, pocket size so worth carrying around in your purse for those moments when you are hungry in a different part of town and can't decide where to eat or suddenly find yourself with a free evening & longing for a dose of culture !
6. The Oasis : a free magazine published by the CSA (Community Services Association) in Maadi. The article content isnt high but it has a lot of ads for services in Maadi that can be extremely helpful. Pick up your free copy at the CSA centre on Road 21.
7. The BCA Chronicle : An excellent resource for expats. Lots of relevant articles. More articles than ads, unlike the Oasis. Pick up your free copy from the BCA clubhouses.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Bookshops in Cairo
Was searching for a DK Eyewitness Guide to Turkey which sent me on a Scavenger-like hunt across Cairo's bookshops. I did chance upon some new gems in addition to some of my old favourites.
Thought I would just do a quick listing & brief review of the bookshops I like in Cairo which may help you out if you are searching for something. Do remember, I was focussed on travel books. Fiction titles in Cairo I find very expensive compared to India & they take time to come into this country by the time they are cleared by the censor. I get my fiction fix from India via whoever is visiting.
1. The AUC bookshop on the AUC main campus is my absolute favourite. I spend at least 1 day each month at this location checking out their new titles & re-browsing some old ones. The AUC-(American University in Cairo) has its own printing press and they bring out an amazing array of Egypt related books written by Subject Matter Experts. Coffee Table Books, history, travel, religion, jewelery, fiction, Egyptian literature, architecture .... the variety of topics they cover is endless. Highly recommend that you visit this bookshop if you are looking for a book related to Egypt.
They have a second outlet in Zamalek too, which I have not yet visited. They stock other (Non-AUC press) titles too as well as International Newspapers. They have a very large collection of Lonely Planet guidebooks, but don't stock DK. They are quite accommodating about ordering books & calling you when something you want has come into the store.
Tip 1 : They have a sale twice a year, where some books are sold at huge discounts but everything else is on at least 20% discount.
Tip 2 : Use this excuse to see the wonderful AUC grounds and palace which has been converted to the Administration block. Carry some form of photo id which you will need to leave at the gate if you are not a student.
Tip 3 : If you are planning on spending more than a week in Cairo (as a tourist or an expat moving into this country) and have more than a passing interest in sight seeing, definitely pick up Lesley Lababidi's - Cairo - The Family Guide This is the 2006 edition. The 2007 edition may be on its way. I've used my copy so much, its actually gone soft and has dog ears. (Anyone who knows me, knows I like my books to be crisp to the touch - always)
Tip 4: You can buy an AUC bookstore membership card for 50LE. This will give you a 10% discount on your purchases. (I think its valid for at least a year. Worth the expense if you plan to buy more than 500LE worth of books from them.
2. Diwan Bookstore on 26th July Street in Zamalek, is a favourite with Expats for good reason. They have a wonderful cross section of books. A section dedicated to books in French and German and a very large section of books for children and a seperate one for teenagers. If you are looking for Children's books with an Egyptian theme (for gifting back home) this is the place to head to.
They have a little in-house cafe which serves lovely coffee and light snacks. Books from the store are not supposed to be read at the Cafe, but they have a section of books and magazines for those who want to read while sipping coffee.
3. The BookSpot is a lovely bookstore on Road No. 9 in Maadi run by my friends Sigrun and Mandy. This is a bookstore which makes you feel completely at home. There's complementary tea or coffee on offer and the best part of a visit to this shop is to catch a chat with either Mandy or Sigrun. You can even buy and order books from them online and collect them at your leisure or have them delivered to you. They take back second hand books and sell them at a discounted rate which is a boon for speed readers.
The atmosphere here is extremely friendly. Many disoriented/culturally shocked Expat women have found solace, friendship and like minded souls through this shop and its owners.
4. Kotob Khan is another gem on Lasilky Road in Maadi. They were recently featured on Al Jazeera TV for their service to the community. They organise documentary nights, book of the month readings, debates and other events, some of them in collaboration with Pen Temple Pilots. They have a wide collection of English and Arabic books and some travel books among others.
5. Volume 1 is a nooky little bookshop located off Al Sawra street in Mohandaseen & behind Victoria College in Maadi. The Mohandaseen shop has an extensive collection of Travel books, a large collection of AUC press publications, childrens books and fiction. They have a large stationary and gift section too.
6. Librairies Renaissance also on al Sawra street stocks only French publications but boasts a very large collection of fiction, children's books, cookbooks and other topics all in French.
7. Adam Bookshop at the Maadi Grand Mall in Maadi is a really tight small spaced bookstore. They have a decent collection of books, that spill all over the store so there's not much space to walk around. If I understand right, they were one of the first bookshops in Cairo to cater primarily to expats.
8. Virgin Megastores has a very large extensive collection of music & movies but I wouldn't say the same for their books. Yes, they have all the popular stuff but if you are looking for something just a little out of the way then this is not the place to look. They do not take orders. (given the size of their chain, I did expect them to do this) Can't blame them, they are only following a "big retail business" rule - stock fast moving items only. If you are looking for bestsellers in any genre you can find it here. But the store completely lacks the intimate feel of all the other bookstores in this list. You are treated as a commodity not a customer.
In the other bookstores the personal touch with the shop assistants, those manning the counter and in some cases the owners themselves makes a book lover want to keep returning to those stores. The shop assistants and the owners are happy to discuss the merits and demerits of a book and recommend further or alternate reading. At Virgin, they look up their computer to see if the book you want is in stock or not. That is the extent of Customer interaction. Lets not start talking about service. Ok, end rant. I like chain stores like CarreFour and Spinneys for my groceries but for my books I like a personal touch. I have nothing against chain bookstores. I think Crossword in India has managed to balance the chain aspects vis a vis the personal touch very well. Although Strand is still a personal favourite and I have my little nooks in every city I've lived in.
9. Alfa Markets especially the one in Zamalek do stock a fair amount of books and at some point had a good collection of DK Eyewitness Guides. But when I checked last it looked like they were having a clearance sale of all their books.
Prices are almost the same across these bookshops with a few disparities. But they are not large enough to warrant a trip to another part of town unless you are planning to buy in bulk.
I did not find the book I was looking for anywhere. Finally I turned back to the last resort Amazon.com The books were available at a discount but the shipping rates are killing me !
Thought I would just do a quick listing & brief review of the bookshops I like in Cairo which may help you out if you are searching for something. Do remember, I was focussed on travel books. Fiction titles in Cairo I find very expensive compared to India & they take time to come into this country by the time they are cleared by the censor. I get my fiction fix from India via whoever is visiting.
1. The AUC bookshop on the AUC main campus is my absolute favourite. I spend at least 1 day each month at this location checking out their new titles & re-browsing some old ones. The AUC-(American University in Cairo) has its own printing press and they bring out an amazing array of Egypt related books written by Subject Matter Experts. Coffee Table Books, history, travel, religion, jewelery, fiction, Egyptian literature, architecture .... the variety of topics they cover is endless. Highly recommend that you visit this bookshop if you are looking for a book related to Egypt.
They have a second outlet in Zamalek too, which I have not yet visited. They stock other (Non-AUC press) titles too as well as International Newspapers. They have a very large collection of Lonely Planet guidebooks, but don't stock DK. They are quite accommodating about ordering books & calling you when something you want has come into the store.
Tip 1 : They have a sale twice a year, where some books are sold at huge discounts but everything else is on at least 20% discount.
Tip 2 : Use this excuse to see the wonderful AUC grounds and palace which has been converted to the Administration block. Carry some form of photo id which you will need to leave at the gate if you are not a student.
Tip 3 : If you are planning on spending more than a week in Cairo (as a tourist or an expat moving into this country) and have more than a passing interest in sight seeing, definitely pick up Lesley Lababidi's - Cairo - The Family Guide This is the 2006 edition. The 2007 edition may be on its way. I've used my copy so much, its actually gone soft and has dog ears. (Anyone who knows me, knows I like my books to be crisp to the touch - always)
Tip 4: You can buy an AUC bookstore membership card for 50LE. This will give you a 10% discount on your purchases. (I think its valid for at least a year. Worth the expense if you plan to buy more than 500LE worth of books from them.
2. Diwan Bookstore on 26th July Street in Zamalek, is a favourite with Expats for good reason. They have a wonderful cross section of books. A section dedicated to books in French and German and a very large section of books for children and a seperate one for teenagers. If you are looking for Children's books with an Egyptian theme (for gifting back home) this is the place to head to.
They have a little in-house cafe which serves lovely coffee and light snacks. Books from the store are not supposed to be read at the Cafe, but they have a section of books and magazines for those who want to read while sipping coffee.
3. The BookSpot is a lovely bookstore on Road No. 9 in Maadi run by my friends Sigrun and Mandy. This is a bookstore which makes you feel completely at home. There's complementary tea or coffee on offer and the best part of a visit to this shop is to catch a chat with either Mandy or Sigrun. You can even buy and order books from them online and collect them at your leisure or have them delivered to you. They take back second hand books and sell them at a discounted rate which is a boon for speed readers.
The atmosphere here is extremely friendly. Many disoriented/culturally shocked Expat women have found solace, friendship and like minded souls through this shop and its owners.
4. Kotob Khan is another gem on Lasilky Road in Maadi. They were recently featured on Al Jazeera TV for their service to the community. They organise documentary nights, book of the month readings, debates and other events, some of them in collaboration with Pen Temple Pilots. They have a wide collection of English and Arabic books and some travel books among others.
5. Volume 1 is a nooky little bookshop located off Al Sawra street in Mohandaseen & behind Victoria College in Maadi. The Mohandaseen shop has an extensive collection of Travel books, a large collection of AUC press publications, childrens books and fiction. They have a large stationary and gift section too.
6. Librairies Renaissance also on al Sawra street stocks only French publications but boasts a very large collection of fiction, children's books, cookbooks and other topics all in French.
7. Adam Bookshop at the Maadi Grand Mall in Maadi is a really tight small spaced bookstore. They have a decent collection of books, that spill all over the store so there's not much space to walk around. If I understand right, they were one of the first bookshops in Cairo to cater primarily to expats.
8. Virgin Megastores has a very large extensive collection of music & movies but I wouldn't say the same for their books. Yes, they have all the popular stuff but if you are looking for something just a little out of the way then this is not the place to look. They do not take orders. (given the size of their chain, I did expect them to do this) Can't blame them, they are only following a "big retail business" rule - stock fast moving items only. If you are looking for bestsellers in any genre you can find it here. But the store completely lacks the intimate feel of all the other bookstores in this list. You are treated as a commodity not a customer.
In the other bookstores the personal touch with the shop assistants, those manning the counter and in some cases the owners themselves makes a book lover want to keep returning to those stores. The shop assistants and the owners are happy to discuss the merits and demerits of a book and recommend further or alternate reading. At Virgin, they look up their computer to see if the book you want is in stock or not. That is the extent of Customer interaction. Lets not start talking about service. Ok, end rant. I like chain stores like CarreFour and Spinneys for my groceries but for my books I like a personal touch. I have nothing against chain bookstores. I think Crossword in India has managed to balance the chain aspects vis a vis the personal touch very well. Although Strand is still a personal favourite and I have my little nooks in every city I've lived in.
9. Alfa Markets especially the one in Zamalek do stock a fair amount of books and at some point had a good collection of DK Eyewitness Guides. But when I checked last it looked like they were having a clearance sale of all their books.
Prices are almost the same across these bookshops with a few disparities. But they are not large enough to warrant a trip to another part of town unless you are planning to buy in bulk.
I did not find the book I was looking for anywhere. Finally I turned back to the last resort Amazon.com The books were available at a discount but the shipping rates are killing me !
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Taxi: Tales of Commuting - Khaled Al-Khamisy - a Book Review
This is a review written by my friend - Nael Shama - on Khaled Al-Khamisy’s book “Taxi: Tales of Commuting”. It was published in the Daily Star (Egypt) on the 23rd of March.
Cairo 
School of International Relations University of St. Andrews , UK
By Nael M. Shama
Eighty thousand taxis roam the Egyptian capital every day. They have become part and parcel of the city that has inspired and intrigued throughout history countless philosophers, writers and poets.
In “Taxi: Tales of Commuting”, Khaled Al-Khamisy lists 58 conversations he had with taxi drivers while traveling in the streets of Cairo in the period from April 2005 to March 2006. Doing most of the talking, the drivers indulged in various fields, such as religion, politics, economics, and sports in addition to recalling memories, dreams and stories. Naturally, the author bumped into different types of drivers, but whether he is witty, kind-hearted, aggressive or fanatic, there is always some interesting story to tell.
Since taxi drivers predominantly belong to the lower and middle classes, their words well-represent what is on the mind of a sizeable percentage of the Egyptian society; economic hardships, criticism of the government, and indignation at the injustice of authority, unsurprisingly, top the list.
The conversations also reveal many key features of the mindset of Egyptians. For example, traces of ‘conspiracy theory’ reasoning could be frequently detected, such as the deep-rooted belief that every decision the government takes to regulate public life aims at collecting money, or that hidden hands manipulate the stock exchange market to maximize the profit of business tycoons at the expense of small investors.
Also, many of Al-Khamisy’s encounters bring to light the patience and endurance with the help of which the majority of Egyptians lead their lives against the backdrop of harsh living conditions and austere economic difficulties. For instance, a heavy-eyed driver told the author that he had spent three unbroken days in his taxi to be able to pay its installments on time. Others complained of the back-breaking cost of private lessons and the rising prices of foodstuff, bills of utilities, etc.
Quite amazingly, the insightful political analysis given by some drivers is of no less quality than that provided by professional analysts who do not miss a day without asserting their expertise on television shows. This is, therefore, an invitation to reassess the dominant stereotype that Egyptians are, largely, inattentive to politics.
Social cleavages weigh heavily in the words of drivers. Hence, the African Cup of Nations that Egypt
Undoubtedly, the original idea of the book comprises its major advantage. Nevertheless, its big success on the small Egyptian book market highlights a shocking reality, which is the wide gulf between social classes. What would, otherwise, interest book buyers (mostly well-off intellectuals or quasi-intellectuals) in the subject of the book, that is in what cab drivers have to say unless they both belong to two, both economically and culturally, different worlds? Said differently, to upper classes, taxi drivers are interesting alien creatures. What they say and do is worth attention and even documentation. Likewise, to taxi drivers, the wealthy are dissimilar in every way possible.
Al-Khamisy offers little analysis, and this is definitely one of the book’s great strengths. It leaves the job to the reader without imposing on him certain predisposed interpretations. This lack of analysis partially explains why the book could not be easily classified into any classical genre of writing, but this does not cut its importance in any way.
On the other hand, the organization of the book was not carefully selected. Al-Khamisy merely conferred a number to each conversation. This order could have been replaced with another where each conversation is given a title that epitomizes the main theme of the chat. To add a sense of coherency, moreover, dialogues could have been organized into separate categories, each with a distinct theme (e.g. perceptions of the government, complaints of economy, etc).
The book is a delightful journey into the psyche of Egyptians in the beginnings of the twenty-first century. The reader could effortlessly sense how lively and spontaneous the words of drivers are. Egyptians’ typical sense of humor makes it extremely amusing as well. Meanwhile, tragic narrations are, to say the least, tear-jerking. And that’s why the book mirrors so well life in contemporary Egypt
Yet, the work is not only appealing to the general reader, for reading between the lines propels scholars and specialists to ponder about the Egyptian character, the changes it has gone through and the repercussions this would have on the future.
The book could be found at Diwan, Kotob Khan and Al-Shorouk bookstores. General information on the book could be accessed through the website (www.taxitalks.com).
Nael M. Shama
PhD Candidate
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