Monday, June 19, 2017

A bookish journey to Egypt...

Chronicle of a Last Summer by Yasmine El Rashidi is the coming of age story of a young girl growing up in Cairo, Egypt, and also that of her family. Told over the course of three pivotal summers, it is also the story of Egypt's recent political turmoil and of this girl's and her family's struggle to survive all these changes. I found it to be a compelling story of love and loss--full of memories of the past and idealistic hopes for the future--and an unflinching look at the very real cost of freedom. El Rashidi's prose is spare, but so effective. I couldn't put this book down. It's a fascinating novel, and I learned a lot about life in Cairo and how Egypt's many revolutions have affected its citizens. It's a place I've always wanted to visit, and after reading this book, I almost feel like I have. Here are a few snippets to give you a taste of El Rashidi's writing:

"Grandmama said that to have a sip of the Nile is like drinking ancient magic. If you make a wish it comes true."
"The police would come sometimes and take things. They took the cart of the peanut seller on our street. They took the kiosk by the school that sold chocolates and Cleopatra cigarettes by the one. They took the man who worked for Uncle Mohsen. They also took the boy who cleaned cars at the garage next door. In the cartoon Abla Fatiha they told us that if we were naughty they would take us too." 
"Over lunch Dido says the only way our lives will change is if we demand it. People like our cousin in America are the reason we're in stagnation. Leaving is the greatest evil. Then silence."
"I think of Uncle, warning Dido and me that in life we have to assess things and always take a position. I wonder if my position is too often ambiguous...I think a lot about what it means to be a witness, the responsibility of it. I wonder about my writing, if fiction is a political statement or simply no position. Is the silence of objectivity and being an observer, witness, the same as complicity? This question occupies me...(Uncle) would tell me that to be a witness to history is a burden for the chosen."
Happy Reading!

16 comments:

  1. This sounds like an interesting story and I'm intrigued with the Egyptian setting. Will keep this book in mind. :)

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    1. It wouldn't take you long to read because it's not a very long book, and it reads so well.

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  2. Lark, I'm so glad you posted about this one - sounds like you really enjoyed it :) I love when a book transports you - and to Egypt!

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    1. It was good to step into a book that was completely different from what I've been reading. :)

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  3. I hope you get to visit there someday. I've always wanted to go too.

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    1. Hopefully we'll both make it there someday! :)

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  4. It's on my list to visit someday as well. I love reading about Egypt, in both fact and fiction. I'm off to check the library for this one!

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    1. Fingers crossed that they have it. Because this is a good one. :)

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  5. I love a book that actually transport you to another place!

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    1. I do, too. Especially because I can't afford to travel to all the places I want to see. :)

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  6. You read so widely around the world! How did you come across this title? Were you looking for something set in Egypt or did you see a review elsewhere?

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    1. I actually ran across this one at the library; I was looking for another book and there this one was on the shelf. And I couldn't resist checking out a book set in Egypt. It was library serendipity at its best. :)

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  7. A few years back I used to read a lot of African and Asian plots but it's been a long time since I looked at any. I think my book tastes are too set in horror, dystopia and UF now to go back to this kind of read but it sounds like you had a good time with it!

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    1. I get in certain book moods, too, so I understand where you're coming from. Sometimes I crave a good zombie book, or a wilderness survival story or a good dystopian book, too. :)

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  8. Love the excerpts you included. I think an Egyptian setting would be intriguing!

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    1. The setting was the main reason I checked this one out. :)

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