An Egyptian Satire About a Condemned Building

Amir I. Hussain is an assistant professor of Islamic Studies at
California State University in Northridge.

Both of these titles deal with modern Egyptian life, and are printed in
bilingual English/Arabic editions. Although the author calls them
“novels,” they are in fact short stories.

An Egyptian Satire uses the clever, if not original, conceit of
describing Egyptian society through the metaphor of a condemned
building. Each of its 10 apartments offers a different window into
Egyptian life. The stories are well written, although to readers who are
familiar with Egypt, the characters may come across as stereotypical.
And while the book condemns the politics of the late Egyptian leader
Gamal Abd al-Nasr, it fails to address the corruption of the Mubarak
regime. Also regrettable are the repeated references to the backwardness
of Islam, and of Egyptian Muslims.

The Blessed Movement is a three-part story that addresses such issues
as censorship, the suppression of literature, and imprisonment without
just cause. Unfortunately, the characters are underdeveloped, as are
some of the book’s central ideas.