Fountain and Tomb, by Naguib Mahfouz

This was a unique and enjoyable book, consisting of over seventy brief vignettes (some only a few paragraphs long). Speaking in present tense, the narrator describes life in the Cairo neighborhood where he grew up in the 1920s. The stories focus on the people and customs that surrounded the boy and made an impression on him, defining not only his life but the life of the alley. He tells of romances and heartaches, marriages and deaths; he describes both highborn and lowborn neighbors, pious people and lawbreakers. In his telling he neither judges these characters nor asks the reader to. He presents a distinct look at a distinct culture, but is not compelled to defend, explain, or propagate the religion and customs of his people. He merely weaves, in spare but picturesque language, a fascinating portrait of life as seen and interpreted by an observant and impressionable young boy.

I found this book easy and fun to read; the structure makes it easy to read in short segments, although often I was enjoying myself too much to put it down. I loved the brief look at so many different, fascinating people. Sometimes I couldn't help thinking, Are there really this many interesting (even eccentric) people to be found in one close-knit neighborhood? I wish I could observe such types of people and be able to describe their story in such a succinct yet poetic way!

(This review also posted on Leaf and Frame.)