' Captivating and controversial!an amazing glimpse of modern Egyptian society and culture.' New York Review of Books. 'A bewitching political novel of contemporary Cairo that is also an 'engage' novel about sex, a romantic novel about power and a comic yet sympathetic novel about the vagaries of the human heart.' New York Times Book Review.
Like the late Naguib Mahfouz, Alaa Al Aswany is a world writer, making Egyptian concerns into human ones and beautifully illuminating our always extraordinary and sometimes sad and baffling world.' The Times. The Yacoubian Building paints a marvellous picture of modern Egypt with all its hypocrisies and fanaticism - the gulf between rich and poor reminiscent of Dickensian London. 'You don't get many writers like Alaa Al Aswany in the West any more. It is at once an impassioned celebration and a ruthless dissection of a society dominated by bribery and corruption.
Alaa Al Aswany's mesmerising novel caused an unprecedented stir when it was published in Egypt. Religious feelings live side-by-side with promiscuity bribery and exploitation alternate with moments of joy and elation modernity clashes with the vision of a more ancient society. From those living in squalid and cramped conditions on the rooftops, to the homosexual editor of Le Caire newspaper and a womanising aristocrat, all of the contradictions in Egyptian society are here. The people whose lives orbit his - the inhabitants of the building - are also facing their own difficult choices. 'The Yacoubian Building' follows Taha's trajectory from innocence to tragedy. When Taha seeks solace in a student Islamic organisation, the pressure mounts, and he is drawn to actions with devastating consequences. His girlfriend, Busyana, finds herself unable to earn a living without also providing sexual services for the men who hire her. He studies hard, and passes all the exams, but when he is rejected because his family is neither rich nor influential, the bitterness sets in. Taha, the doorman's son, has aspirations beyond the slum in the skies, and dreams of one day becoming a policeman. The Yacoubian building - once grand, but now dilapidated - stands on one of Cairo's main boulevards. Name of previous owner on flyleaf.Īn international bestseller, 'The Yacoubian Building' is a mesmerising and controversial novel that is at once an impassioned celebration and a ruthless dissection of a society dominated by bribery and corruption. Our books are protected with a removable plastic cover and sent with care.įirst edition, 2007. Postage prices outside of South African borders will differ. We combine postage, so do look at our other items on offer.
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