Description: Assembled here are three novels of post revolutionary Egypt by Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz. Taken together with The Beggar, The Thief and the Dogs, and Autumn Quail (published by Anchor in omnibus form in December 2000 and separately prior to that), these novels represent a comprehensive collection of Mahfouz's work on twentieth-century life. They mark an experimental phase in Mahfouz's career in which he abandoned the old-fashioned descriptive style and turned to allegory. While they vary in style, they share a thematic focus on the existential questions of modern Egypt.<P>"Respected Sir" (first published in Arabic in 1975) revisits a familiar theme -- vaulting ambition -- in a powerful and religious metaphor. What is essentially a prosaic experience becomes, in Mahfouz's hands, a beautifully crafted story of an exalted and arduous holy quest.<P>"Wedding song" (first published in Arabic in 1981) is a psychological drama about life in the theater, focusing on how four very different kinds of minds apprehend and reckon with the realties hat surround them.<P>"The Search" (first published in Arabic in 1964) is a powerful story of lust, greed, and murder. Unflinching and dramatic, this novel is a lurid and compelling tale that harshly criticizes post Revolution morality.

Please Wait