Customer Reviews

A Woman of Cairo

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I just reread this book, after reading it many years ago. In the intervening time, I spent several months in Egypt, and moved to Morocco, where I have resided for nine years. I couldn't put the book down, and read through it in about three days. What most impressed me this time was the author's comprehensive knowledge of the Middle-Eastern mentality, and his intimate portrayal of King Farouk, Nasser, and Sadat--the author having not only lived in Cairo, but having met personally these three historical figures. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in Egypt, or who plans to travel to Egypt. My only other comment is that most Egyptian women would not be behaving as does the main female character in this novel, but they would think as she does.

A Woman of Cairo deserves more than five stars.It took me three days to finsih this book when I first read it when it was published in 1987 and I've just finished rereading it for the second time. This is a great story of star-stuck lovers in a magestic but politically turbulent country. Noel Barber knew how to weave a fantastic lovestory whose characters are so lively they're about to jump out of the pages. The setting is a great country with magestic civilisation. I've read all Noel Barber's books. This is his best by far. It's a pitty his dead. We'll no longer have such excellent stories set against historical backgrounds. If you can find this book, make sure you get it. It's a grrrrreat read. I assure you, you will not be disappointed.

It was such a good book that I am really disappointed that its out of print and can't be shared with other people. Noel Barber writes so well that he keeps you entranced between the facts of this story based on truth and he paints a fascinating picture of two different societies in time of violent change...a passionate love affair...set in Egypt from 1919 through to World War II... I couldn't put it down each time I re-read it !!

Imagine my surprise when I ordered this book after enjoying Sakkara. It is the same book. When was it renamed ????

"This was an excellent book! A lot of historical truths and very well written. I love all Noel Barber's books,he tends to combine historical facts with fiction and weaves wonderful stories...It could be because he used to be a journalist and all his books go through a wide range of cultures.I also loved his book 'Tanamera' which was a beautiful love story and was made into a television series..."

Excellent historical background, very interesting for anyone interested in Egypt of the first half of the 20th century. Enjoyable, easy to read story put in perspective by the historical events surrounding the characters over the years. It's a thick book but I was sorry when I finished reading it.

I am sorry that I bought this book on someone's recommendation . . . what a waste of time. At first I was interested in the historical aspects, but the melodrama and disaster upon disaster got to be rather old. I thought the female characters were rather poorly drawn but the male characters weren't much better being very stereotypical.

I don't claim to be a big expert on the middle east and egypt, but I have spent some time in Cairo and I don't see very many women there acting as this "Serena" was able to do . . . oh, wait, i forgot, the wealthy always act different than the regular people. Maybe I'll pull out Naguib Mahfouz and read a bit more about the REAL Cairo . . . I would suggest that other people here might benefit from a read of those novels to better understand Cairo and Cairenes.

I wish I could give this book less than 1 star. Less than zero stars, if that were possible. The writer lived in Cairo and knows about the place. The book also contains an accurate map of a section of Cairo pre-1950, with correct street names and all.

This serves to give the impression that the author knows Cairo and allows him to write in such a way that he gives the impression of historical accuracy. He also says at the very start that the historical setting, though not the very characters, is historically accurate. This is totally misleading. The book gives a totally incorrect portrait of life in Cairo in the 1/2 half the 20th century, and particularly of the Egyptian people who are represented in a very negative light.

The writer took the liberty to insert pure fiction as historical fact. British soldiers were never stabbed while shopping in inner Cairo alleys. The houses of British civil servants were never ransacked by frenzied mobs high on drugs. None of this has ever happened. How can anyone give himself the right to start by saying that he knows Cairo, that he lived there, that the setting is historically accurate, then write such garbage. It is not only misleading, but also, given the current political climate, damaging as it gives a totally wrong impression about the Egyptians in particular and Arabs in general.

This will be the first time that I throw a book that I won in the garbage bin.

This book was selected for our book club here in Singapore. Our group has been focusing on works set in Asia. However, as someone else said before me, other than historical references, this book is a boring POS. I've read 1/3 of it, it has been boring thus far, and I refuse to waste any more time on it. After reading the other negative reviews, I'm now absolved of any guilt for not finishing it.

Other than the bits about politics, this book was the wost trash I have read in ages! I couldnt stand the "woman of cairo" herself--simpering fool that she was. And the endless stream of disaters, what else could go wrong to these people? They deserved all they got except the happy ending for being so damn tiresome.