Egyptian writers
Alaa Al Aswany: where to start
Alaa Al Aswany is one of the best-selling novelists in the Arab world, and The Yacoubian Building made modern Cairo famous far beyond Egypt. Here is who he is, which of his books to read first, and where to go next.
Who is Alaa Al Aswany?
Al Aswany was born in Cairo in 1957 and trained as a dentist, studying at Cairo University and earning a master’s degree at the University of Illinois at Chicago. For years he wrote while running his dental practice in downtown Cairo.
The Yacoubian Building, published in Arabic in 2002, became a phenomenon: a best seller across the Arab world, translated into more than thirty languages and made into one of the biggest Egyptian films of its time.
He is also known as an outspoken critic of authoritarian rule. He was a founding member of the Kefaya protest movement and has written widely about Egyptian politics.
Where to start
2002
The Yacoubian Building
One grand downtown Cairo apartment building, from the rich on the upper floors to the families living on the roof, and the corruption that ties them together.
2007
Chicago
Egyptian students and academics at a university in Chicago, caught between two countries.
2013
The Automobile Club of Egypt
Servants and masters at an exclusive Cairo club in the last years of the monarchy.
2018
The Republic of False Truths
Cairo during the 2011 revolution, told through people on every side of it.
Why read Alaa Al Aswany today
Al Aswany writes about power: who has it, who pays for it, and how it reaches into private lives. His books are crowded, frank and fast-moving, and they explain modern Egypt better than most reporting.
Another Egyptian voice
Al Aswany shows how power and corruption run through a single Cairo building. A.M. Khalifa follows them on a larger stage: Terminal Rage turns a hostage standoff in Manhattan into a conspiracy that reaches the highest levels of government and an Egyptian prison.
A.M. Khalifa grew up in a diplomatic corps family across more than fifteen countries and is the only Egyptian writing commercial espionage fiction in English. His debut, Terminal Rage, has sold more than 500,000 copies and received a starred review from Booklist.
More Egyptian writers
Naguib Mahfouz · Ahdaf Soueif · Nawal El Saadawi · Omar El Akkad · Ahmed Mourad · Ahmed Khaled Towfik · Tawfiq al-Hakim · Taha Hussein · Radwa Ashour · Yusuf Idris · Latifa al-Zayyat · Bahaa Taher · Youssef Ziedan · Sonallah Ibrahim · Ibrahim Abdel Meguid · Ezzedine Choukri Fishere · Khaled Al Khamissi · Mansoura Ez-Eldin · Waguih Ghali · Yasmine El Rashidi · Noor Naga · Omar Robert Hamilton · Nabil Farouk · A.M. Khalifa
Questions
What is Alaa Al Aswany’s most famous book?
The Yacoubian Building (2002), a portrait of Cairo through the residents of one downtown apartment building.
Which Alaa Al Aswany book should I read first?
Start with The Yacoubian Building. If you enjoy it, read Chicago next.
Is Alaa Al Aswany a dentist?
Yes. He trained as a dentist and practiced in Cairo for many years while writing.
Who are Egyptian writers like Alaa Al Aswany?
Naguib Mahfouz, for Cairo seen through its streets and families. Ahdaf Soueif, for modern Egypt in English. For an Egyptian writing political thrillers in English, try A.M. Khalifa.