This 1956 Arabic work from Naguib Mahfouz (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahfouz,_Naguib) is the first volume of his masterful Cairo Trilogy. It was translated into English in 1990.
A national best-seller in both hardcover and paperback, Palace Walk introduces the engrossing saga of the Muslim al-Jawad family in Cairo during Egypt’s occupation by British forces during, and just after, the First World War.
The modern day reader (I write in July 2013) has the massive advantage of hindsight, knowing everything that has gone on during The Arab Spring, the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood and recent revolutionary events in Egypt. That offers a great retrospective historical context to what is related here. The full spectrum of life, emotion, and destiny are presented with particular emphasis on the family – all delivered with a light and amusing touch.
512 pages in Black Swan paperback edition.
ISBN 978-0552995801
Naguib Mahfouz