Books from Egypt

Alexandria, 1964. Under President Gamal Abdel Nasser, Egypt is undergoing a political transformation that threatens the city’s cosmopolitan spirit. At the elegant waterfront restaurant Artinos, a diverse circle of friends gathers each evening to discuss art, love, justice, and the future of their country. Among them are Lyda, the restaurant’s owner; Carlo, a charismatic Italian bartender; Anas, a painter; Abbas, a liberal lawyer; and Chantal, the owner of Alexandria’s most popular French bookshop. United by their affection for the city they call home, they struggle to reconcile their ideals with a regime that increasingly demands obedience and suppresses individual freedoms. As businesses are nationalised, suspicions deepen, and political pressure intensifies, their friendships and convictions face an unprecedented test. Through the intertwined lives of these characters, Alaa Al Aswany captures the twilight of a multicultural world, exploring how authoritarianism transforms society and how ordinary people navigate the painful collision between personal loyalties and political power.

Set in Egypt in 1884, What the River Knows follows nineteen-year-old Inez Olivera, a young woman from a wealthy Argentine family whose life changes after the mysterious deaths of her parents. Determined to discover what happened to them, Inez travels to Egypt, where she encounters political intrigue, dangerous secrets, and a world far removed from the privileged life she has known. Her investigation brings her into conflict with Whitford Hayes, an Englishman working for her uncle, whose guarded behaviour makes it difficult to determine whether he is an ally or an adversary. As Inez uncovers clues about her parents’ past, she becomes entangled in a mystery involving ancient Egyptian history and dangerous magic. Blending historical fantasy, romance, and suspense, the novel explores independence, trust, and the risks of pursuing the truth.

An Israeli family gathers for the holidays, but beneath the familiar rituals lie old resentments, unspoken fears, and questions about the meaning of home. Amotz Yaari, a successful engineer, and his wife, Daniela, find their carefully ordered lives disrupted by a family crisis that sends Daniela travelling to Africa to visit her widowed brother-in-law. Meanwhile, their son is serving in the Israeli army, and the family struggles to reconcile its private concerns with the realities of military service and political conflict. Moving between domestic life and distant landscapes, Friendly Fire examines the fragile bonds that hold families together and the ways war infiltrates even the most intimate relationships.