Megawra Book Club | Al-Sa’irun Niyaman (Sleepwalkers)

The Book Club is another activity of Megawra’s monthly program where we meet and discuss a certain book and its relevance to architecture, urbanism, and even spatial design and living.

We will discuss a different book each month either in Arabic or English. This will be led by a moderator who will contribute in managing these discussions.

The novel ” Al-Sa’irun Niyaman ” (Sleep Walkers) written by Saad Mekawy  will be discussed this month ( April )and the discussions will be moderated by Hani Mahfouz .

The first meeting of the club Wednesday April 11, 2012 7:00 PM
The second meeting of the club Wednesday April 18, 2012 7:00 PM
The third meeting of the club Wednesday April 25, 2012 7:00 PM
The fourth meeting of the club Wednesday, May 2, 2012 7:00 PM

About the novel

This novel is Saad Mekawy’s most well-known book. It addresses the last thirty years of Mamluk rule. The book was criticized that it was a direct reflection of the officers ruling Egypt in the 1950s and 60s showing their struggles as well as their relation to the entire nation. This  novel was published year 1963, hence it was one of the first novels to document this era.

Saad Mekawy (1916-1985) was born in the village of Dalatun in the governorate of al-Munufiyya. He finished his high school in Cairo, then traveled to France to go to college . He then joined the newspaper Al-Masry as a writer and in the following years rose to fame as a novelist and script writer.

Hani Mahfouz
A graphic designer who graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Alexandria in 1988. He established his own company, Hani Mahfouz Designs, in 1997