While the fading autumn sun sped toward the horizon, the young boys headed home - they were not used to trying to see at night without the moon's glow. So begins this uncoventional, hauntingly mythic novel. In the tradition of magical-realism, author Ibrahim Abdel Megid crafts a tale steeped in symbolism. Writing in a shimmering lyrical style he brings alive the dreams, customs, and everyday concerns of people living in historic obscurity on the fringe of the glitzy, petrodollar kingdoms of the Middle East. The tale begins on a worksite in Egypt's western desert. Here, in the middle of nowhere, railway men and locals wait in hope for the annual return of a ""distant train."" When last it came this vehicle brought with it foreigners, soldiers - and economic opportunity; then it stopped. Each of Megid's characters is allegorical in nature. Each part of the novel is framed by memory and the way remembrance takes shape and affects the characters. The story's main characters are time and place. Yet its dramatic thrust is the way in which place gives rise to history through the passage of time and the rise and fall of settlement. ""Distant Train"" reaffirms Megid's status as a new, imaginative, and distinct voice in the field of narrative literature and the time-honored arena of storytelling.

About the Author
Ibrahim Abdel Megid is one of the most prolific writers of Egypt's post-Naguib Mahfouz group. His awards include the Naguib Mahfouz Award and the Cairo International Book Fair Award. He has lectured on Middle Eastern fiction and culture in America and abroad. Hosam Aboul-Ela is an assistant professor of English at the University of Houston. This is his second Arabic literary translation.


Book Information
ISBN 9780815608592
Author Ibrahim Abdel Meguid
Format Hardback
Page Count 206
Imprint Syracuse University Press
Publisher Syracuse University Press
Weight(grams) 480g
Dimensions(mm) 234mm * 168mm * 20mm