Revolution in retrospect Youssra el-Sharkawy – Egyptian Mail – 28 January 2014 THREE years on, Egypts uprising, which ousted long-standing former president Hosni Mubarak, continues to rivet attention and inspire intellectuals. For politician and writers, the whole spectrum of the 18-day revolt has yet to be fully uncovered. This year, the January 25 Revolution is the focus of many publications available at the current Cairo International Book Fair, which runs until February 6 at the Nasr City Fairgrounds in eastern Cairo. In his new book Koraset el Tahrir (Tahrir Notebook), author Mekawy Saeed narrates and documents the events witnessed by Egypt since 2011. He chooses ‘Tahrir Notebook’ as the title of his book because through it he presents his own observations on the revolution. In his book, the author also takes the side of the marginalised people as well as the poor, usually ignored by politicians. Saeed also looks into the life of street children, who used to stay in Tahrir square, the epicentre of the uprising against Mubarak. He tells the story of Sabrine, a 14- year- old girl. During the crackdown mounted by Mubaraks police on the protesters at the square, Sabrine used to collect rocks from the nearby streets to be used by the campers in self-defence. Life appeared to Sabrine as if it would be like this forever and the square appeared to be as a homeland, writes Mekawy. He adds that the revolution is still underway and every day, new stories are being discovered. The book is issued by the Egyptian-Lebanese Publishing House and is available at the Cairo Book Fair, which features 755 publishers from 24 countries, with Kuwait being the guest of honour. Anew novel entitled Ashyaa Adeya Fel Midan (Normal Things in the Square) by el-Sayed Negm, also focuses on the 2011 revolt. Sayed writes the novel from his own perspective as a man, who participated in the October 1973 war against Israel. The protagonist, Hamdy Abdel Aleem, is an old man, who experienced the 1952 revolution that overthrew the moarchy in Egypt. The novelist traces the changes and problems in Egypt from the 1950s until 2011. The lead character at first went to Tahrir out of curiosity. After a while, he decided to stay in the square until the so-called Battle of Camels when pro-Mubarak thugs on horses and camels attacked protesters camping in Tahrir. ‘Normal Things in the Square’ is published by el-Helal House. Another book tackling the Egyptian revolution is Oyon el-Thawra (The revolutions Eyes) by Hossam Saad featuring research on the uprising and its circumstances. The author initially thought to limit the book to the toppling of Mubarak. However, he changed his mind and decided to continue giving an indepth look at the ensuing happenings. The book is published by Layla House. Ayam el-Kazeb wal Dam (Days of Lies and Blood), is a book by journalist Tamer Abu Arab. It documents the violence that has convulsed Egypt since Mubaraks ouster on February 11, 2011, until few days after the overthrow of the Muslim Brotherhood-linked president Mohamed Morsi on July 3, 2013. Abu Arab sums up all that violence in the evocative title of the book, ‘Lies and blood’. The book also attempts to explore Egypts political near future. It is issued by Kayan Publishing and Distributing House. Presenting a different outlook, Mayadeen Al Ghadab (Squares of Anger), a book compiled by critic Hussein Hamouda, handles the 2011 revolt by delving deep into writings by Egyptian novelists including Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz and veteran writer Ibrahim Aslan. Their stories were written long before the revolt. ‘Squares of Anger’ is published by El-Ain House. Probably the only book that tackles the anti-Morsi uprising and its link to the 2011 revolution is that penned by Samir Amin entitled Egypts Revolution After June 30. The book is also published by El-Ain House.
Posted on: Sun, 16 Mar 2014 13:49:02 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015