10-05-2026, 09:02 AM
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz
This is the first book in the Cairo Trilogy. I received the entire trilogy as one book from the library. Clocking in at 1500 pages, the book is physically a pain to read. Just too thick. I'm getting ready to just get the Trilogy for my Kindle so I don't have to fight with the book so much.
It is also a tough read mentally. The family fully gives into the patriarchy. What the father Al-Sayid says goes. Despite the fact he goes out drinking and whoring every night. Amina, his wife never gets to leave the house. The one time she does, to visit a local mosque, she gets kicked out of the house for a week. The two sons live in fear of their dad. Fahmy, son number 2, is going to be lawyer. Yasin has the same desires as dear old dad and he is a rapist. The youngest son Kamal doesn't have much character yet. He just goes to school. The two daughters won't ever leave the house until they marry. Khadijia is less than attractive but since she is eldest, she must marry first. Aisha is pretty but has to wait. Fortunately, they do find husbands to get them out of the house.
The first three-quarters of the book depicts their home life in tremendous detail. In the last quarter, the revolution of 1919 intrudes. Fahmy is part of the student revolutions. Al-Sayid gets stopped by the soldiers camped outside of their home and forced to do work. Everything gets tense.
I needed more of the last quarter and less of the first three-quarters. I really wanted to go in and get those women out. But it is a close look at that culture at that time. In many ways, they are just like us. In some, strikingly different.
On to the second book.
This is the first book in the Cairo Trilogy. I received the entire trilogy as one book from the library. Clocking in at 1500 pages, the book is physically a pain to read. Just too thick. I'm getting ready to just get the Trilogy for my Kindle so I don't have to fight with the book so much.
It is also a tough read mentally. The family fully gives into the patriarchy. What the father Al-Sayid says goes. Despite the fact he goes out drinking and whoring every night. Amina, his wife never gets to leave the house. The one time she does, to visit a local mosque, she gets kicked out of the house for a week. The two sons live in fear of their dad. Fahmy, son number 2, is going to be lawyer. Yasin has the same desires as dear old dad and he is a rapist. The youngest son Kamal doesn't have much character yet. He just goes to school. The two daughters won't ever leave the house until they marry. Khadijia is less than attractive but since she is eldest, she must marry first. Aisha is pretty but has to wait. Fortunately, they do find husbands to get them out of the house.
The first three-quarters of the book depicts their home life in tremendous detail. In the last quarter, the revolution of 1919 intrudes. Fahmy is part of the student revolutions. Al-Sayid gets stopped by the soldiers camped outside of their home and forced to do work. Everything gets tense.
I needed more of the last quarter and less of the first three-quarters. I really wanted to go in and get those women out. But it is a close look at that culture at that time. In many ways, they are just like us. In some, strikingly different.
On to the second book.
As a matter of fact, my anger does keep me warm