All That Ali Kotb Knows: On ‘Meccano’
Before it was published by the now-shuttered Sharkiat publishing house in 2011, the novel won the Ihsan Abdel Quddous Award that same year.
Egypt
Two Poems by Al-Dawy Mohammed Al-Dawy
“Many years ago / I swallowed a butterfly while I was singing.”
Ibrahim Aslan’s ‘The Rare Meeting with Al-Aqqad’
“That is how this man, along with Taha Hussein—both of whom were legendary figures who dominated our intellectual and spiritual life—transformed into a mighty monster, one whose only virtue was to degrade me.”
New Fiction: ‘The Last Stop’ by Hany Ali Said
“I walk up “the bridge,” which is the name I’ve given to the entrance hall in my uncle’s home, because it’s higher than the other rooms.”
New Poetry in Translation: ‘The Light Isn’t Surrounded by Guards’
‘Rays of light aren’t surrounded by guards.’
9 Short Stories by Egyptian Women, in Translation
Although this list does include short stories by Radwa Ashour and Salwa Bakr, it largely focuses on work by women writers who emerged in the ’90s, ’00s, and ’10s.
Poetry in Translation: Nada Elshabrawy’s ‘In a Bad Movie’
We walk the streets shoulder to shoulder / bumping into plastic mannequins / they break / but we shatter
Friday Finds: An Excerpt of Mohamed Kheir’s ‘Slipping’
“Where the corniche wall ran out, a great tree hooped over to drink from the river. Beyond the tree there was nothing: nothing between us and the water. “
From the Archives: A Cookbook from Cairo’s Flourishing 14th Century
“Kanz al-Fawāʾid is unique for its variety and comprehensive coverage of contemporary Egyptian cuisine.”