List Books Supposing The Day the Leader Was Killed

ISBN:	0385499221 (ISBN13: 9780385499224)
Edition Language:	English

The Day the Leader Was Killed Paperback | Pages: 112 pages

Point Epithetical Books The Day the Leader Was Killed

Title	:	The Day the Leader Was Killed
Author	:	Naguib Mahfouz
Book Format	:	Paperback
Book Edition	:	First Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 112 pages
Published	:	June 6th 2000 by Anchor (first published 1983)
Categories	:	Fiction. Novels. Literature

Commentary To Books The Day the Leader Was Killed

AN ANCHOR PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

From the Nobel Prize laureate and author of the acclaimed Cairo Trilogy, a beguiling and artfully compact novel set in Sadat's Egypt.

"[Mahfouz] is not only a Hugo and a Dickens, but also a Galsworthy, Zola and a Jules Romain."--Edward Said

The time is 1981, Anwar al-Sadat is president, and Egypt is lurching into the modern world. Set against this backdrop, The Day the Leader Was Killed relates the tale of a middle-class Cairene family. Rich with irony and infused with political undertones, the story is narrated alternately by the pious and mischievous family patriarch Muhtashimi Zayed, his hapless grandson Elwan, and Elwan's headstrong and beautiful fiancee Randa.  The novel reaches its climax with the assassination of Sadat on October 6, 1981, an event around which the fictional plot is skillfully woven.

The Day the Leader Was Killed brings us the essence of Mahfouz's genius and is further proof that he has, in the words of the Nobel citation, "formed an Arabic narrative art that applies to all mankind."

Rating Epithetical Books The Day the Leader Was Killed

Ratings: 3.64 From 2387 Users | 395 Reviews

Evaluation Epithetical Books The Day the Leader Was Killed

Something very Russian about this, excepting the pace which is rapid. Feel certain that Tolstoy could have stretched the engagement out to 500 pages at least and killed off a parent or two for good measure. I don't know enough about Sadat to be able to tell whether the background is bare or simply impressionistic. I would guess the latter, but at any rate this is not a book one can read to learn about Egyptian society from a standing start.

The Day the Leader Was Killed takes place in 1981 culminating with Sadats assassination. In the background, we get to know that Gamal Abdul-Naser died in defeat after losing Sinai in the June 1967 War. Sadat succeeds him and rules in victory after recovering Sinai, but the former leader is still greatly missed by his people. Also, Sadats open-door economic policy raises the cost of living of ordinary Egyptians. Caught in the middle of this, Elwan and Randa, in their mid-twenties and from a

super quick read. less than a 100 pages.3.75

It's difficult to say but this might be my favorite Naguib Mahfouz book I read so far. Although I'd be quick to admit that I did sort of have some conflicting thoughts about the book throughout reading it, but I must say that it can only be considered a great book.Most of my initial complaint, and probably the reason why this book gets a 4/5 rating instead of 5/5 is because Naguib Mahfouz uses one of the most common Egyptian plots that is often overused by most movies, tv shows and novels. But

Affecting, if somewhat slight. Nice little glimpse of a moment in history.

This book is beautifully written from the perspective of three narrators, each with a distinct voice. The narrative of the story is expertly woven by Mahfouz in a way that gives different perspectives on the historical time period and cultural norms in Egypt before the assassination of Anwar Sadat. I found the story incredibly interesting and engaging, but found the end to be a bit abrupt. Overall, though, I thoroughly enjoyed Mahfouz's style and the layout of this book. Great read!

A skillful blending of three points of view. This is not the usual lets see how these peoples lives all intersect at the end of the story, but rather life through the young and the old, men and women, and lovers torn apart by seeming necessity.