The Nobel Prize winner Naguib Mahfouz, who was born in Cairo in 1911, began his writing journey when he wrote Khufu’s Wisdom (Hikmat Khufu) in 1939. He died in 2006, leaving behind a rich collection of famous books that we enjoy reading nowadays.

1. The Cairo Trilogy (Thulathiat Al-Qahira)

The Cairo Trilogy is the most famous of his works. It talks about the three generations of a family living in Cairo. It consists of:

• Palace Walk (Bain Al-Qasrain) published in 1956
• Palace of Desire (Qasr Al-Shawq) published in 1957
• Sugar Street (Al-Sukkariyya) published in 1957

Being the first part of the trilogy, Palace Walk talks about a middle-class family living in Bain Al-Qasrain in Egypt. Mahfouz narrates the everyday life of the family, highlighting the contradictions created by the social circumstances.

Palace of Desire is about the same family, but it revolves around the second generation and their marriages, as it is the second part of the trilogy.

The sweet finale of the trilogy is Sugar Street which continues the story of the same family, but it focuses on the third generation and the political movement in the country during and after the Second World War.

It is worth noting that the three parts were turned into movies in 1964, 1967, and 1973. The three movies were directed by Hassan Al-Imam.

2. Children of Gebelawi (Awlad Haretna)

This novel talks about the struggle between good and evil, and it combines all the elements of an exceptional literary piece including symbolism, plot, imagery and imagination. It was later turned into a radio series, echoing in the minds of listeners everywhere.

3. Morning and Evening Talk (Hadeeth Al-Sabah w Al-Masa’)

In this novel, Mahfouz talks about essential topics in human life and discusses various social issues including customs and traditions. A unique feature of the novel is that it is arranged alphabetically according to the names of its characters, and it was turned into a series of 28 episodes, which was released in 2001.

4. Wedding Song (Afrah Al-Qobba)

This novel, which was turned into a series in 2016, talks about some stage actors, and it discusses dreams, idealism, happiness, and how small details can influence circumstances and change opinions accordingly.

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