Zanouba
By: Out el Kouloub ; translated and with an introduction by Nayra Atiya.
Contributors: Atiya, Nayra.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: Syracuse University Press
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Syracuse, N.Y
Language: eng
Number of pages: 204
Subjects: Middle class -- Fiction.; Egypt -- Fiction.
Description: Out el Kouloub (1892-1968) is an author whose voice is just becoming heard in the United States. A member of the Muslim aristocracy in Egypt, she wrote unforgettable novels, mostly about Egyptian women of varying social classes and about family life in a traditional society. Like most members of the aristocracy, she wrote in French.

In Zanouba, the reader is treated to vivid scenes of Egyptian middle-class life, starting in the 1900s. Abundant in traditional poems, songs, sayings, and rituals, the story of Zanouba enhances our understanding of certain deeply seated aspects of Egyptian life: the practices - including elaborate rituals - involved in guaranteeing the birth of a son; the jealousy and anger of the barren wife.

Out el Kouloub's lush documentation bridges past and present while telling a tale that is both believable and touching.
Notes: Translated from the French.