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Children of the Alley
Children of the Alley | Naguib Mahfouz
5 posts | 12 read | 8 to read
The tumultuous "alley" of this rich and intricate novel (first published in Arabic in 1959) tells the story of a delightful Egyptian family, but also reveals a second, hidden, and daring narrative: the spiritual history of humankind. From the supreme fuedal 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, we find the men and women of a modern Cairo neighborood unwittingly reenacting the lives of their holy ancestors: the "children of the alley." This powerful, self-contained novel confirms again the richness and variety of Mahfouz's storytelling and his status as "the single most important writer in modern Arabic literature" ("Newsweek"). "From the eBook edition."
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AnneCecilie
Children of Gebelawi | Naguib Mahfouz, Naj?b Ma?f??, Naguib Mohfouz
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Pickpick

I‘m not sure how I feel about this book, but I‘m giving it a pick since I have a feeling that this is a book I will think about.

Gebelawi have several sons and over time he kicks two of them out when they angers him. The rest of the book is following them and their ancestors and the area that they settle down in.

It‘s said in the introduction that the book can be seen as an allegory for religion with Gebelawi as God.

AnneCecilie I can definitely see that, but in that case the bosses can be seen as different religious leaders and they don‘t come off that well. A book about power and how people will do anything to get it and keep. The ahi won the Nobel Prize of Litterateur in 1988. I bought this book back in 2005 and I‘m glad I finally read it for #foodandlit #Egypt @Texreader @Butterfinger @Catsandbooks 3y
70 likes1 comment
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MalaysianBiblioholic
Children of the Alley | Naguib Mahfouz
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Pickpick

One bane of finishing a good book is the fear that the next one won‘t be as good 🤞

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AMVP
Children of the Alley | Naguib Mahfouz
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#maybookflowers day 26 - #setinthemiddleeast

Love the cover on this one. Need to mark this for when I get back into daily structured reading.

vivastory I commented on a post by someone else about a striking cover by the same author. I've been meaning to read him. 7y
10 likes1 comment
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RealLifeReading
Children of the Alley | Naj?b Ma?f??
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Mehso-so

A story that spans several generations who live in an alley in Cairo, an alley in the shadow of the mansion where their ancestor lives. But it is also a allegory whose characters relive the lives of Cain and Abel, Adam and Eve etc the depiction of which outraged religious authorities such that Mahfouz agreed to not publish it in Egypt. Not an easy read as it's at times slow and also complicated with its many generations. #backtotheclassics

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Anabnieto
Children of the Alley | Naguib Mahfouz
Pickpick

This is one of the most beautiful I have ever read. Should be a must in schools