Midaq Alley
Midaq Alley
Author: Naguib Mahfouz
Desc: Never has Nobel Prize-winner Naguib Mahfouz's talent for rich and luxurious storytelling been more evident than in Midaq Alley which centers around the residents of one of the hustling teeming back alleys of Cairo. From Zaita the cripple-maker to Kirsha the café owner with a taste for young boys and drugs to Abbas the barber who mistakes greed for love to Hamida who sells her soul to escape the alley these characters vividly evoke the sights sounds and smells of Cairo. Long after one finishes reading the smell of fresh bread lingers as does the image of the men gathering at the café for their nightly ritual. The universality and timelessness of this book cannot be denied.