Born in 1946, Ibrahim Abdelmeguid is a writer from Alexandria, Egypt. After obtaining a BA in philosophy from Alexandria University he left Alexandria to live in Cairo. He is the author of 14 novels and five short story collections, a number of which have been translated into English, French, and German. Some of his books have been adapted for television and film. His novels include: The Other Place (2004), The House of Jasmine (2005), The Hunter and the Doves (2006) and The Threshold of Pleasure (2007). He also published a book about the Egyptian revolution, Days of Tahrir (2011). He received both the Egyptian State Prize for Literature and the Sawiris Prize for his novel In Every Week there is a Friday (2009). He is best-known for his “Alexandria Trilogy”: No One Sleeps in Alexandria, Birds of Amber, and Clouds Over Alexandria, which was translated into English and French. In most of his stories he deals with his home city at different historical eras, delving into critical social issues and subjects that are still considered a taboo in the Middle East, as with his latest novel Al Abera, published in 2020. Al Abera is a breathtaking account of the adventures and suffering of a transgender teenager in Egypt. Abdelmeguid is considered one of the most prominent writers in Egypt.
Ibrahim Abdelmeguid
Ibrahim Abdelmeguid
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إبراهيم عبد المجيد
© Hoopoe fiction
Selected bibliography
- العا برة , The Transgender Woman, Al Mutawassit, Italy, 2020
- الإسكندرية في غيمة , Clouds Over Alexandria, Dar El Shorouk, Egypt, 2012. English translation: Clouds Over Alexandria, Hoopoe Fiction, Egypt, 2019, trans. by Kay Heikkinen
- في كل أسبوع يوم جمعة, Every Week Has a Friday, Dar El Shorouk, Egypt, 2009. German translation: Jede Woche… gibt es einen Freitag, Verlag auf dem Ruffel, Germany, 2016, trans. by Aron Schatten
- طيور العنبر , Birds of Amber, Dar El Shorouk, Egypt, 2000. English translation: Birds of Amber, AUC Press, Egypt, 2005, trans. by Farouk Abdel-Wahab
- لا أحد ينام في الإسكندرية , No One Sleeps in Alexandria, Dar El Shorouk, Egypt, 1996. English translation: No One Sleeps in Alexandria, AUC Press, Egypt, 2004, trans. by Farouk Abdel-Wahab. Spanish translation: Nadie duerme en Alexandria, Ediciones del Oriente y del Mediterraneo, Spain, 2016, trans. by Pablo Garcia Suarez
- البلدة الأخرى , The Other Place, Dar El Shorouk, Egypt, 1991. English translation: The Other Place, AUC Press, Egypt, 2006, trans. by Farouk Abdel-Wahab. French translation: L’autre pays, Actes Sud, France, 1994, trans. by Catherine Tissier-Thomas
- بيت الياسمين , The House of Jasmine, Dar El Shorouk, Egypt, 1987. English translation: The House of Jasmine, Interlinks, USA, 2012
- مسافات , Distant Train, Dar El Shorouk, Egypt, 1983. English translation: Distant Train, Syracuse University Press, USA, 2007 trans. by Hosam M. Abou-Ela
* Working title
Press
Ibrahim Abdelmeguid Talks about Writing, Pandemic Literature, interview at the Cairo Book Fair, 2021
Nile Award winner Ibrahim Abdelmeguid talks about lasting impact of 1952 Revolution in Al Ahram, July 2019
Ibrahim Abdelmeguid as Literary Bard and Dostoevsky’s Great Grand-nephew in Arablit, 2017
Prizes and awards
- The Sheikh Zayed Book Award for Beyond Writing in 2016
- Clouds over Alexandria was longlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction in 2014
- Sawiris Cultural Award, for Every Week Has a Friday in 2011
- The Egyptian State Prize for Excellence in Literature, Literature from the Supreme Council of Culture in 2004
- The Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature from the American University of Cairo for The Other Place in 1996
- The Cairo International Book Fair Award for Best Novel for No One Sleeps in Alexandria in 1996
Book(s) featured on this site
Reviewed by Persa Koumoutsi