In the Eye of the Sun [Paperback]

Ahdaf Soueif (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 20, 1999

This is a love story, a story about growing up, a story about what its like to be a women (East and West), a story about the history of the post-imperial Middle East during the last 30 years or so, perplexed and bloody years, and a story about home.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This densely detailed, richly textured novel impeccably recreates the milieus of Cairo, London and English university life as it recounts the maturing of Asya, a beautiful Egyptian who, by her own admission, "feels more comfortable with art than with life." Soueif, a Londoner making her American debut, tells Asya's story cinematically, beginning in 1979 and going back to 1967, with chapters formally divided into scenes and a plethora of flashbacks, flash-forwards and different perspectives. During the course of those years, Asya, daughter of an intellectual Cairo family, falls in love with and marries Saif, a highly successful computer expert who indulges her with considerable luxuries. But the marriage is plagued by sexual problems; going to England to pursue a doctorate, Asya eventually takes up with Gerald, a pseudo-sensitive boor studying marketing. Finally, her marriage over, she returns to a very different and less hospitable Cairo than the one in which she grew up to begin a teaching career about which she is, at best, ambivalent. The author invests scenes of childhood with the burnished glow of fond memory; these are among the most poignant passages here. Her impressive and only slightly overlong novel, with its acutely observed vision of male-female relations as a series of complex power struggles, suggests the emergence of a major new talent.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The war-torn Middle East is a dramatic backdrop for Asya's coming of age. A beautiful Egyptian of wealth and privilege, she is untouched by the wars and turmoil around her and instead focuses on her future husband, Saif, and on her single-minded pursuit of a Ph.D. But Saif's computer business keeps him isolated in the Syrian desert, and Asya's Ph.D. grant lands her in a grim English university where chilly weather and chillier people prevail. Frustrated in marriage and career, she casts about, surviving a disastrous affair and eventually growing into "complete possession of herself." Soueif's novel is an impressive next step forward in time from Naguib Mahfouz's "Cairo Trilogy" (e.g., Palace of Desire , LJ 1/91). Its structure, characters, and unique blend of clashing cultures and politics make it an important addition to any collection.
- Paul E. Hutchison, Bellefonte, Pa.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 800 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Paperbacks; Sixth Printing edition (May 20, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0747545898
• ISBN-13: 978-0747545897
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.4 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,497,409 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book ..great details full of culture & history, August 19, 2000

By 

AA "ashour001" (Newton, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Eye of the Sun (Paperback)

This was the second of Four Souief Books and her first full-length work. It is a real treat, very well conceived and written. It is an excellent portrayal of Egyptian society and the various conflicting influences affecting the Egyptian character.

Ahdaf Souif paints each and every character in the novel in a "real" fashion, they are all very plausible in their strength, peculiarities and humanities; the goodies and the "badies" alike, are all well rounded. This does not only apply to Asya, Seif, Crissie and the other main personalities, but to the many minor ones too. No cardboard here!

In part this is a story of young idealistic Egyptian girl, Asya, growing up in the quasi-socialist days of Nasser. Ahdaf Souief paints a remarkably accurate picture of life in Cairo during that era. The 1967 Six days war takes place, dreams are shattered and many lives are torn, but largely life goes on. Asya's love story in Egypt moves with her abroad as she goes to the North of England for post Graduate education. Again Souief paints a remarkable detailed and accurate picture of life in the North of England in that era. Asya struggles and adapts with life in the west. She is so very firmly anchored in her roots, upbringing, and culture; yet she still wades into The West.

Asya strengths and weaknesses as a human being dominate much of the second half of the book, all written in a gripping language that makes you feel you are right there, part of the scene. At times I wanted to shout out "leave him.. throw him out .. he's no good ..don't you see ..." or "call him ..tell him ... don't put up with that .."

Souif painted an outstandingly accurate picture of how a wedding, a funeral, school life and even war and politics feel like in Egypt. Souif was specially masterful at the way she weaved the funeral scene, with her superb translation of the Quran. I could actually picture myself in Etba in Cairo receiving the mourners.

Ahdaf Souif's mastery of both English and Arabic comes across in every word in the book. She loves both languages and takes and gives joy in illustrating their beauty without losing the theme of the book.

The book shed a great deal of light on how Egyptian view not only themselves but also how they view the west, the Arabs and also Israel. It provides a very realistic look on how integrated Moslems and Christians are in City life in Cairo. (at least used to be , not really sure about now)

Aisha and Sandpiper are 2 other outstanding books by AS, if you enjoy this book, you will certainly like these 2. In a funny way, some of the stories from these 2 books are intertwined with In the Eye of the Sun. You will appreciate these 2 shorter books many times more after you have read this one.

The Map of Love, her most recent book 1999, was short listed for the Booker prize (and should have won it over Disgrace which is also a fantastic book with great insight on life at the other end of the Africa) , is an excellent book but not half as good or real as this book, In The Eye Of The Sun is a real treat. I was depressed when I finished it, I wanted more!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping novel, memorable characters., November 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: In the Eye of the Sun (Paperback)

This is a very sad story, but it has been shaped into a very satisfying book. The writing is often remarkably beautiful. There are passages which could be pulled out and stand up on their own as vignettes, but the novel is also well structured, with subtle echoes of details occuring from one place to another. But this work does not merely impress with its technical skill. The characters live. The truth is, I liked this novel mostly because I liked Asya. I often did not understand why she did what she did, particularly why she endured what she endured, but I liked her mind, her observations, her sense of humor. In addition to all of this, the book seems to be a good orientation to recent Arab history, from an Arab perspective, something which adds to my interest in the work. It's been a few years since I read it and it's about time to read it again.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book - Egyptian in detail and universal in nature..., September 16, 1999

By 

Nadia S. Edwards "aidan" (Miami, FL, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In the Eye of the Sun (Paperback)

From a Jewish woman poin of view, totally devoted to the existence of the State of Israel, I could read the other side's opinions and attitudes without feeling offended or irrate. Just saddened. Ms. Soueif is too smart a writer to give it fanatic overtones. As far as the story is concerned, I couldn't put the book down. The dialogue and the characters are so real that I deeply cared for what happened to them. My God, this Saif, never wanting to have a conversation, became quite talkative when the pain was in his soul. And Asya, so emancipated and yet so impotent to take a strong stand against the lowest of men; compliant and scared not to hurt his feelings; totally paralyzed by her Middleeastern upbringing. Some things a woman just doesn't do... Oh, this book... I took pleasure in the smallest detail - doing the dishes, putting handcream on, metaphors and semantics, important and unimportant, they breathe life into this novel. It's one of the best I read in a long time. My only question is: do Saifs exist? I know there are plenty of Geralds, but except for Saif's aloofness that is real, his generosity and at the same time his disinterest in his wife - are they real? I wish I could personally congratulate the writer.