The Zafarani Files
An Egyptian Novel
Nonfiction, Reference & Language, Foreign Languages, Arabic, Fiction & Literature, Literary
| Author: | Gamal al-Ghitani | ISBN: | 9781617971495 |
| Publisher: | The American University in Cairo Press | Publication: | March 1, 2009 |
| Imprint: | The American University in Cairo Press | Language: | English |
| Author: | Gamal al-Ghitani |
| ISBN: | 9781617971495 |
| Publisher: | The American University in Cairo Press |
| Publication: | March 1, 2009 |
| Imprint: | The American University in Cairo Press |
| Language: | English |
An unknown observer is watching the residents of a small, closely-knit neighborhood in Cairo's old city, making notes. The college graduate, the street vendors, the political prisoner, the café owner, the taxi driver, the beautiful green-eyed young wife with the troll of a husband all are subjects of surveillance. The watcher's reports flow seamlessly into a narrative about Zafarani Alley, a village tucked into a corner of the city, where intrigue is the main entertainment, and everyone has a secret. Suspicion, superstition, and a wicked humor prevail in this darkly comedic novel. Drawing upon the experience of his own childhood growing up in al-Hussein, where the fictional Zafarani Alley is located, Gamal al-Ghitani has created a world richly populated with characters and situations that possess authenticity behind their veils of satire.
An unknown observer is watching the residents of a small, closely-knit neighborhood in Cairo's old city, making notes. The college graduate, the street vendors, the political prisoner, the café owner, the taxi driver, the beautiful green-eyed young wife with the troll of a husband all are subjects of surveillance. The watcher's reports flow seamlessly into a narrative about Zafarani Alley, a village tucked into a corner of the city, where intrigue is the main entertainment, and everyone has a secret. Suspicion, superstition, and a wicked humor prevail in this darkly comedic novel. Drawing upon the experience of his own childhood growing up in al-Hussein, where the fictional Zafarani Alley is located, Gamal al-Ghitani has created a world richly populated with characters and situations that possess authenticity behind their veils of satire.
