From one of Egyptβs most acclaimed novelists, here is a vivid chronicle of Egyptian society, with penetrating analysis of all the most urgent issuesβeconomic stagnation, police brutality, poverty, the harassment of women and of the Christian minority, to name a fewβthat led to the stunning overthrow of the Mubarak government. Al-Aswany addresses himself to all the questions being asked within Egypt and beyond: who will be the next president, and how will he be chosen in a land where heretofore only simpletons, opportunists and stooges involved themselves with elections? What role will the Muslim Brotherhood play? How can democratic reforms be effected among a people used to such contradictions as the religiously observant policeman who commits torture? In a candid and controversial assessment of both the potential and limitations that will determine his countryβs future, Al-Aswany reveals why the revolt that surprised the world was destined to happen.
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