Book Review

Book Review: The Fly On The Rose (الذبابة على الوردة) by Khodeir Meirry: Khodeir Meirry's autobiographical account of his experience as an "Enemy of The State" in Iraq during Saddam Hussein's reign, is a novel that is simultaneously harrowing and sublime. This is a novel written by someone who has literally been to hell and back; someone who has experienced the true meaning of human evil and lived to tell the tale. And the tale isn't pretty. Meirry, a prose stylist and a masterful storyteller, takes us through his journey, which begins with being a Medical School student who aspires to be a writer; to being considered a "criminal" and sent to a penal colony where he is tortured, almost to death, for refusing to admit his guilt of a crime that is never defined; to being sent to an insane asylum as a schizophrenic with no hope of a cure.

Throughout the novel, the reader senses Meirry's pain and anguish at the corruption, stupidity, ego, and lawlessness of Saddam Hussein's regime, where intellectuals are persecuted for no reason other than their desire to think, analyze and speak what they deem the truth; where soulless individuals are treated like gods, and humble people are treated like animals; where sanity is a precious commodity and insanity the norm. Meirry's account of his struggle to hold on to his sanity in the face of unspeakable horrors is touching, fierce and unflinching. But, strangely enough, never sentimental; mainly because Meirry focuses on what it means to be sane and strong; what it takes to break a man and transform him into nothing but a mumbling wreck; and what it truly means to be free. He doesn't dwell on the ugly details of torture and humiliation (although he doesn't shy away from them, either), instead focusing almost solely on his own psyche and how it responds to the horrors it experiences. In the end, according to Meirry, what saved him was a mixture of faith, resilience, sheer luck, and his belief in the power of art and imagination, as, during his incarceration, he devoured book after book, in an attempt to escape the harrowing reality that surrounded him.

With this novel, Meirry confirms his status as a superb storyteller, whose command of language, pacing and character is a marvel to behold. He is also the only Arab writer I've come across who's truly capable of portraying, with beauty and restraint, and convincingly, characters whose minds are coming undone. A masterpiece that should be discussed and analyzed for years to come.

* Available from Al-Hadara Publishing.

Book Review

Book Review: The Idol (الصنم) by Mohamed Alaa El Din: A triumph of style over substance, Mohamed Alaa El Din's short novella The Idol (الصنم) is an acquired taste. The story is thin, the book is very short (under 60 pages), and the overall atmosphere dream-like. But the writing is lush, the descriptive passages drip with atmosphere, and the story, however thin, is strange and hypnotically told. The story revolves around the relationship between an oracle/mystic and his young son, who travel from one place to another, seemingly running from something. Along the way the father works as a fortune-teller and spellcaster, and, slowly, we discover that he is both feared by many and afraid of something that's haunting him and his son. Meanwhile, the son has terrifying visions that involve a mysterious man thwarting him and tides of blood washing over him. The boy feels that all his and his father's troubles are somehow linked to a family heirloom that they take with them wherever they go: an idol of a one-eyed man.

Yes. The story is indeed bizarre. But Alaa El Din sure knows how to cast a spell, as his style is fluid and unique, and his characters memorable. And the ambiguous, frightening ending also packs a punch. This is a stylistically daring novel, and one which haunts the reader days after he/she has finished it.

* Available from El-Ain Publishing.

Book Review

Book Review: Peek-A-Boo and other stories (بيكا - بوو و قصص أخرى) by Ehab Medhat: With its inane title and Japanese-Horror-Style cover artwork, you could mistake this collection of stories for cheap entertainment. Well, it isn't. Peek-A-Boo and other stories by Ehab Medhat is a surprisingly effective collection of tales that covers a range of genres.

The collection consists of nine stories, which include: The opening title story - about a young Egyptian woman who adopts a young girl with seemingly paranormal abilities - is a strange choice for an opening tale, since, despite being an effective and occasionally clever allegory for spousal abuse, it's far from being the strongest of the bunch; The President's Guard, a neat psychological suspense tale about a poor young man who - after failing to join the Egyptian Police Academy and fulfill his dream of becoming one of the President's personal bodyguards - comes undone and plots to have his moment of glory, anyway he can; I saw The Devil, an intriguing tale about child abuse and the dark side of humanity, which succeeds in being grimly unnerving; The Ring Of No Laws, a disturbing, clever story, which seemingly is about a weird wrestling match between a man and a woman, but which turns out to be something else entirely; I Didn't Kill My Wife, my personal favorite, a strange, atmospheric crime tale about police brutality, psychosis, the nature of love, and much more. It is a sprawling, ambitious tale, that, alone, justifies buying this collection and proves that Ehab Medhat is a talent to watch.

But that doesn't mean the collection is devoid of duff stories. Far from it. A Matter Of Principle, about a psychiatrist who suspects his wife of infidelity, is a self-indulgent exercise in cliched atmospherics. The Security Guard is a bland tale that thinks itself much cleverer than it really is. While 'Ar'Ar's Daughter, about a poor girl who wishes to grow up to become a pediatrician, is a pretentious little tale that goes nowhere. Medhat also makes the questionable choice of closing his collection with The Old Man And The Shovel, an ambiguous horror story that ends with a cliffhanger!

Throughout the collection one gets the feeling that Medhat is a talented and imaginative writer who is cutting his teeth on these stories. The quality of the stories waver, but the craftsmanship is always there, even when the plots leave something to be desired. But his true accomplishment lies in succeeding in bringing the Egyptian suspense tale screaming into the 21st century. His characters, for the most part, feel modern and like they live in the real world. And his references to popular Arabic TV channels and other pop-culture markers make his stories unabashedly populist in nature (much like Stephen King, whom Medhat quotes on the very first page of the collection, and who was one of the first horror writers in history to make his characters continuously reference pop-culture and thus ground his stories in the real world).

While it has its share of weak stories, this is an entertaining collection from an Egyptian writer who doesn't shy away from wearing his influences on his sleeves (which, arguably, include Stephen King and other popular horror and suspense writers), and who isn't afraid to experiment with different styles and forms; something which makes him a versatile and somewhat daring Egyptian author. I for one am looking forward to watching him grow as a writer.

* Visit the author's official website for more info about the book and where to buy.