Alexandria
Subtitle: the last nights of Cleopatra
By: Peter Stothard
Published: 2013
Language: eng
Number of pages: 383
ISBN-13: 9781468303704
Subjects: Journalists; Travel; History; Description and travel; Anecdotes
Description: "When Peter Stothard, editor of the Times literary supplement, finds himself stranded in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in the winter of 2010, after his flight has been cancelled due to severe weather, he sets out to explore a nation on the brink of revolution. Guided by two native Egyptians, Stothard traces his own life-long interest in the history of Cleopatra, reflecting on her story of lust and loss as well as on his own repeated failure to write the book about her that he had always wanted to. Blending aspects of memoir, history, and travel narrative into an elegent and unique tapestry, Stothard uses the sights and sounds of the ancient city to reconnect with the formative experiences of his life, from his childhood education to his illustrious literary career. Melancholy yet often humorous, Alexanderia probingly deconstructs the enigma of modern Egypt--with its uneasy mix of classical touchstones and roiling Middle Eastern politics--and offers a first-hand glimpse into the fracturing police state of Hosni Mubarak, just before the stunning uprising in Tahrir Square changed everything."--Jacket.
Notes: "First published in Great Britain by Granta Books"--Title page verso.
Table of contents: title: 31.12.10 -- 1; title: Arrival in Alexandria --; title: A yellow room at Le Metropole --; title: Maurice and the Red Tents --; title: How Cleopatra made it happen --; title: 1.1.11 -- 9; title: Cleopatra the First --; title: Mahmoud and Socratis --; title: New Year bombing --; title: The Dead Fountain cafe --; title: Essex clay --; title: I look myself up --; title: 2.1.11 -- 35; title: Slightly poisoned --; title: Muslims and Copts --; title: Monty's bar --; title: Jesus, the missing years --; title: 3.1.11 -- 47; title: Cleopatra the Second --; title: The rough-book --; title: E.M. Forster and the Ptolemies --; title: Boxes of tragedies --; title: Death by needles and beaks --; title: 4.1.11 -- 65; title: Partial eclipse --; title: Sir Anthony Browne's foundation --; title: Mr G and Mr W --; title: She Who Must Be Obeyed --; title: Blood from his nose --; title: An arms salesman --; title: 5.1.11 -- 87; title: V, the schoolgirl --; title: Teenage years --; title: Sodomy in Greek --; title: Burning books --; title: A boy called Frog --; title: Paul Simon and Jimi Hendricks [sic] --; title: 6.1.11 -- 107; title: Cleopatra the Third --; title: Miss Taylor --; title: Signs of a beard --; title: Pompey's Pillar --; title: A bomber and a carpet --; title: 7.1.11 -- 127; title: Cleopatra the Fourth --; title: In Oxford --; title: A kiss from V --; title: Julius Caesar's little war --; title: A cruise down the Nile --; title: 8.1.11 -- 143; title: Maurice gets Marowitzed --; title: Lighthouse island --; title: Mahmoud and the church bomb --; title: Ides of March --; title: 9.1.11 -- 163; title: A lesson from Holladay --; title: Continuators --; title: Watch the office men --; title: Classicists do --; title: A night at The Frogs --; title: 10.1.11 -- 177; title: Cleopatra the Fifth --; title: An actress at St Mark's --; title: Sex with Crissie --; title: Maurice's Nubian night --; title: Socratis on Caesar --; title: Aulus Hirtius, V and me --; title: 11.1.11 -- 195; title: The Metropole red-and-green Ball --; title: Tied down in the tents --; title: Frog and the Mermaids --; title: 12.1.11 -- 209; title: Secret seventies --; title: The Latin for hangover --; title: Alexandrian rules --; title: Southern Bug --; title: Somewhere on Love's Island --; title: Alphabets in the sky --; title: 13.1.11 -- 225; title: The middle of the story --; title: Mark Antony waits at Tarsus --; title: Perfumed sails --; title: Successors to Caesar --; title: A queen cannot choose her pimp --; title: 14.1.11 -- 233; title: Cleopatra the Sixth --; title: Grey days at Big Oil --; title: Bureaucracy student --; title: A different Antony Brown --; title: 15.1.11 -- 225; title: Cleopatra the Seventh --; title: Space barons --; title: V in the Red Tents --; title: Calthorpe Arms --; title: The Thatcher who must be obeyed --; title: F for Farouk --; title: Duke's rout --; title: 16.1.11 -- 289; title: The purpose of parties --; title: Mark Antony s wars --; title: Generous happenings for a general --; title: The new Caesars --; title: 17.1.11 -- 297; title: Queens by night and day --; title: Dreams of dogs --; title: Romans and Alexandrians in the newsroom --; title: Leading articles --; title: The Scargill gaffe --; title: 18.1.11 -- 315; title: Last nights of an editor --; title: Farewell to Calthorpe and other Arms --; title: Lost notes --; title: What happened at Actium --; title: 19.1.11 -- 329; title: Mahmoud and the troops --; title: Death of Antony --; title: Socratis's mother sings --; title: Coincident cancers --; title: 20.1.11 -- 347; title: Maurice and Cleopatra reunited --; title: How to die without pain --; title: E.M Forster on the North Sea --; title: 21.1.11 -- 357; title: V comes to Cheltenham --; title: How to read a Latin poem --; title: The afterlife of Romans --; title: Drink and move on --; title: 22.1.11 --; title: Last night, last words --; title: Farewell to Le Metropole --; title: Noises from the border --; title: the right choice of driver.