๐ ๐ช๐ฌ #3: A story of sisterhood from Egypt
๐ ๐ช๐ฌ #3: A story of sisterhood from Egypt
Rajia Hassib on the intricacies of sisterhood
Welcome to Bookmarked, a weekly newsletter following my journey as I read one book from every country. If you like the sound of my project, why not share this newsletter with a friend?
I was excited to read Rajia Hassibโs A Pure Heart. Hassibโs first novel, In the Language of Miracles, was a New York Times Editors' Choice. I loved her New Yorker essay on being an American Muslim. And, as someone who speaks to her sister at least twice a day, I knew Iโd enjoy a novel unpicking the intricacies of sisterhood.
Though Hassib, who moved from Egypt to the US in her early twenties, writes in English, thereโs a whole world of contemporary Egyptian fiction in translation out there. The best resource I found is Arab Lit Quarterly, a literary journal and blog containing a wealth of articles and essays about contemporary Arabic literature. On writing by Egyptian authors, it covers everything from queer characters to childrenโs magazines and YA and science fiction. Itโs definitely worth checking out.ย
But onto A Pure Heart, a commanding novel about the emotional distance that can easily grow between families separated by oceans.ย
The novelโs main characters are Rose and Gameela, two Cairo-born sisters whose lives have taken wildly different paths. While Rose emigrates to New York to study, lands a curatorial job at New Yorkโs Metropolitan Museum, and marries an American journalist, Gameela, โthe only covered woman in the entire family, rebellious in her conservatism,โ takes an engineering job in Cairo and chooses to live with her parents. Rose is baffled by Gameelaโs commitment to Islam; Gameela is equally confounded by Roseโs willingness to up and leave her own country.
We meet Rose in post Arab Spring Egypt as sheโs sorting through Gameelaโs belongings in their parents' home. Rose is performing a sort of excavation, hoping to uncover anything that may go some way towards explaining her sisterโs death in a seemingly random suicide bombing. Sheโs racked with guilt, unable to shake the feeling that she couldโve called more, couldโve asked more questions, couldโve somehow intervened and saved Gameelaโs life.
โShe wants to say that she lies awake at night thinking of the endless ways she has not helped Gameela, regretting all the times she almost picked up the phone but got too wrapped up in the hustle of life and postponed the call. For weeks, she has imagined the things Gameela might have told her, if they had spoken more oftenโฆ whispering one detail that Rose may have responded to and somehow changed the course of fate. No, donโt do that. But donโt do what? What single misstep on the trail that led to Gameelaโs death could Rose have prevented on the phone?โ
Roseโs husband Mark plays a major role in driving a wedge between the sisters. While Roseโs parents have always been fond of Mark, an Egyptology scholar and foreign correspondent who converted to Islam before marrying Rose, Gameela doubts his authenticity.ย
But then everything changes. When Mark spontaneously visits Cairo on a journalistic assignment, Gameela seems different, โsurprisingly relaxed in his presenceโ. At the time, Mark thinks nothing of it. Only later does he learn about the changes in Gameelaโs life that prompt this shift in their relationship.
A Pure Heart jumps backwards and forwards in time, switching between its various charactersโ points of viewโincluding Saaber, the twenty-one-year-old suicide bomber. Itโs a narrative technique that Hassib uses to dramatic effect: the reader learns what happened to Gameela before Rose does.
A Pure Heart paints a crushing picture of the legal injustices of post-revolution Egypt under General Sisiโs dictatorship. Itโs a rich story that digs deep into issues of class, religion, politics, and postcolonialism, offering a careful and insightful take on how secrets can drive people apart. Hassib is an astonishingly percipient character writer who is at her best when sheโs examining how individuals act, and interact, under tremendously stressful circumstances.
In a pacy 305-pages, A Pure Heart tells an immersive story that draws you in from the very first page.
A Pure Heart by Rajia Hassib (Sceptre, 2019)
More books by Egyptian authors
Hereโs a list of the other recommendations I received this week:
In the Spiderโs Room by Muhammad Abdelnabi, tr. Jonathan Wright
Brooklyn Heights by Miral al-Tahawy, tr. Samah Selimย
Siraaj: An Arab Tale by Radwa Ashour, tr. Barbara Romaine
The Queue by Basma Abdel Aziz, tr. Elisabeth Jaquetteย
The Man from Bashmour by Salwa Bakr, tr. Nancy Robertsย
Women of Karantina by Nael Eltoukhy, tr. Robin Moger
Cigarette Number Seven by Donia Kamal, tr. Nariman Youssefย
Washes, Prays by Noor Nagaย
Otared by Mohammad Rabie, tr. Robin Mogerย
The Crocodiles by Yลซsuf Rakhฤ, tr. Robin Moger
The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif
What have you read recently?
If youโve read a brilliant book in translation or want to pass on a recommendation, Iโd love to hear about it! For this project, Iโm focussing on contemporary fiction and short stories, with a preference for female authorsโbut I wonโt be too dogmatic about it so do share recommendations that donโt quite fit the bill, too.
You can get in touch by replying to this email or leaving a comment. Iโll be featuring your recommendations in upcoming newsletters, and Iโll keep a growing listย here.
Bookmarked is written by Tabatha Leggett. Thank you to Noor Naga, Sahar El Mougy, Richard Jacquemond, and Marcia Lynx Qualey from Arab Lit Quarterly, for their recommendations for this issue.ย If you think someone you know would enjoy this newsletter, please forward it to them!