A List of Must-Read Mahfouz, After The Cairo Trilogy

When you see the name Naguib Mahfouz, the titles of his famous Cairo Trilogy are often not far behind. Palace Walk, Palace of Desire, and Sugar Street… But these are just a few of Mahfouz’s many books and published works. If you’ve read The Cairo Trilogy, where do you go next? Yes, where do you turn for more after finishing Sugar Street?

The Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1988, kept writing until his death in 2006. I was in Cairo when he passed away and his death dominated the national press. Mahfouz received an official state funeral, although the public was denied entry, ironic considering Mahfouz’s focus on the poor and middle classes. His characters are ordinary citizens, not politicians and elites. Instead, we follow the thoughts and actions of shopkeepers, barbers, civil servants, prostitutes, petty criminals, widows, and mothers. And his stories beautifully depict the waves of Egyptian history — Cairo during the World War II era, independence from the British in 1952, the nationalism of Nasser and Sadat, and the years under Mubarak.

So today we honor this iconic Egyptian author, examining four of Mahfouz’s other books. Let’s celebrate the variety of his work, moving beyond The Cairo Trilogy to these four must-reads.

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Midaq Alley

From the publisher: “Widely acclaimed as Naguib Mahfouz’s best novel, Midaq Alley brings to life one of the hustling, teeming back alleys of Cairo in the 1940s. From Zaita the cripple-maker to Kirsha the hedonistic cafe owner, from Abbas the barber who mistakes greed for love to Hamida who sells her soul to escape the alley, from waiters and widows to politicians, pimps, and poets, the inhabitants of Midaq Alley vividly evoke Egypt’s largest city as it teeters on the brink of change.”

Tuve adds: This early work by Naguib Mahfouz is a series of intertwined tales, pointed character studies of residents in old Cairo. In this excellently crafted story, one trait dominates each person’s personality, forming a veritable list of human flaws and weaknesses: greed, vanity, empty piety, addiction…

This tale became a popular Mexican movie as well. The 1995 film Midaq Alley, originally El callejón de los milagros or The Alley of Miracles, won 11 prizes at the Ariel Awards, which celebrates the best of Mexican cinema. The movie also garnered international praise, winning awards in Brazil, Cuba, France, Germany, Paraguay, Spain, and the U.S. Fun fact: this movie features Salma Hayek in one of her early roles, just before her Hollywood breakthrough in Desperado.

Buy the book Midaq Alley here: Amazon or Bookshop.org

Akhenaten: Dweller in Truth

From the publisher: “In this beguiling novel, originally published in Arabic in 1985, Mahfouz tells with extraordinary insight the story of the “heretic pharaoh,” or “sun king,”–the first known monotheistic ruler–whose iconoclastic and controversial reign during the 18th Dynasty (1540-1307 B.C.) has uncanny resonance with modern sensibilities. Narrating the novel is a young man with a passion for the truth, who questions the pharaoh’s contemporaries after his horrible death–including Akhenaten’s closest friends, his most bitter enemies, and finally his enigmatic wife, Nefertiti–in an effort to discover what really happened in those strange, dark days at Akhenaten’s court. As our narrator and each of the subjects he interviews contribute their version of Akhenaten, “the truth” becomes increasingly evanescent.”

Tuve adds: This novel by Naguib Mahfouz explores a wealth of questions. Can you ever truly know someone? People filter our thoughts and actions through their own eyes, creating a myriad of views about every individual. How do we balance these conflicting opinions? And, for historical figures, who chooses which view (which truth) is the correct one? I love how Mahfouz approaches these deeply philosophical questions, all while narrating a complex historical novel.

Buy the book Akhenaten: Dweller in Truth here: Amazon or Bookshop.org

Miramar

From the publisher: “This highly charged fable set in Alexandria, Egypt, in the late 1960s, centers on the guests of the Pension Miramar as they compete for the attention of the young servant Zohra. Zohra is a beautiful peasant girl who fled her family to escape an arranged marriage. She becomes the focus of jealousies and conflicts among the Miramar’s residents, who include an assortment of radicals and aristocrats floundering in the wake of the Egyptian revolution. It becomes clear that the uneducated but strong-willed Zohra is the only one among them who knows what she wants.”

Tuve adds: Another excellent example of Mahfouz’s talent. In this book, he cleverly weaves a story with multiple narrators, retelling a tale from four different perspectives. The plot and complex relationships gradually come into focus, as we receive more insights. And Mahfouz uses his characters for political effect as well, showing their views of Nasser’s 1952 Revolution, touching on land reform, Egyptian nationalism, and other changes. Read this novel for its historical details and the literary skill of an author at his peak.

Buy the book Miramar here: Amazon or Bookshop.org

Children of the Alley

From the publisher: “The tumultuous alley of this rich and intricate novel (first published in Arabic in 1959) is inhabited by a delightful Egyptian family, but is also the setting for a second, hidden, and more daring narrative: the spiritual history of humankind. The men and women of a modern Cairo neighborood unwittingly reenact the lives of their holy ancestors: from the feudal lord who disowns one son for diabolical pride and puts another to the test, to the savior of a succeeding generation who frees his people from bondage.”

Tuve adds: As a religious allegory, this book was banned in Egypt and led to an assassination attempt on Mahfouz, since some conservatives opposed his depiction of the Prophet Muhammed. The plot follows generations of one Cairean neighborhood and mirrors the stories of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed. In Mahfouz’s tale, each new generation brings changes to the alley, before succumbing to its own vices and abuses. Reviewers have described this book as “hauntingly lyrical” and both “immensely entertaining and deeply serious.”

Buy the book Children of the Alley here: Amazon or Bookshop.org

What Next?

Start reading! Look for books by Naguib Mahfouz at your local library. Or, better yet, purchase his work for yourself. Head to your neighborhood bookstore, click the links above, or visit online sites like Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, or Powell’s.

Join the discussion – Which book intrigued you the most? Have you read any of Mahfouz’s works already? Let me know by dropping a comment below. And if you liked this post, please pass it along to others, share it on social media, or subscribe to this blog to receive other posts.

And lastly, make sure to check out other books by Middle Eastern authors! There are so many excellent works and writers to choose from. Here at the blog Other Things, we’ve recently examined award-winning authors from Tunisia, explored topics in Middle Eastern history through two beautiful graphic memoirs, and discussed the work of six must-read authors from Kuwait.