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World » Africa » Egypt

Browse book recommendations:

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Five Books’ interviews on Egypt cover everything from Tutankhamun to Tahrir Square.

Egyptologists Toby Wilkinson and Elizabeth Frood offer their choices for the best books on Ancient Egypt.  Diane Greco Josefowicz talks about French interest in Ancient Egypt in the early 19th century with her best books on French “Egyptomania”.

Philip Mansel, with his best books on the Levant and Dan Morrison with his best books on The Nile, take a look at aspects of Egypt in its broader, geographical and cultural context. Egypt's relationship with the wider Arab world is discussed by Issandr El Amrani in his best books on understanding the Arab world and by Tarek Osman on the same theme.

The origins, evolution and consequences of the Arab Spring and Egypt’s role in it are discussed by professor Marc Lynch in his five books on the origins of the Arab uprising and are touched on by David Cortright in his books on non-military solutions to political conflict. The relationship between the US and modern Egypt is discussed by Lloyd Gardner in his interview on Egypt and America.

Many of these interviews touch on the role of Islam in contemporary Egyptian society. Malise Ruthven, with her best books on Islamism and Ziauddin Sardar with his best books on the future of Islam and Turi Munthe with his best books on Islam and Modernity focus on this directly.

Humphrey Davies chooses his five best books of contemporary Egyptian literature and Denise Hamilton touches on the Egyptian influence on the evolution of perfume.

Egyptian authors on the site include leading feminist Nawal El Saadawi, Ahdaf Soueif, Naguib Mahfouz and Taha Hussein.

    The best books on The Nile, recommended by Dan Morrison

  • Read
    The best books on The Nile - The Black Nile by Dan Morrison

    1

    The Black Nile
    by Dan Morrison

  • Read
    The best books on The Nile - The White Nile by Alan Moorehead

    2

    The White Nile
    by Alan Moorehead

  • Read
    The best books on The Nile - A Different Shade of Colonialism by Eve M Troutt Powell

    3

    A Different Shade of Colonialism
    by Eve M Troutt Powell

  • Read
    The best books on The Nile - The Nile by Robert O Collins

    4

    The Nile
    by Robert O Collins

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    The best books on The Nile - Emma’s War by Deborah Scroggins

    5

    Emma’s War
    by Deborah Scroggins

The best books on The Nile, recommended by Dan Morrison

Journalist and author of The Black Nile, who spent six months travelling the famous river, discusses some of the turbulent times that the Nile has witnessed – and praises its extraordinary beauty.

    The best books on Ancient Egypt, recommended by Elizabeth Frood

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    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Death and Salvation in Ancient Egypt by Jan Assmann

    1

    Death and Salvation in Ancient Egypt
    by Jan Assmann

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    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Visual and written culture in ancient Egypt by John Baines

    2

    Visual and written culture in ancient Egypt
    by John Baines

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    The best books on Ancient Egypt - The Chapel of Ptahhotep by Paolo J. Scremin & Yvonne M. Harpur

    3

    The Chapel of Ptahhotep
    by Paolo J. Scremin & Yvonne M. Harpur

  • Read
    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Village Life in Ancient Egypt by Andrea McDowell

    4

    Village Life in Ancient Egypt
    by Andrea McDowell

  • Read
    The best books on Ancient Egypt - The Tale of Sinuhe and other ancient Egyptian poems by Richard Parkinson

    5

    The Tale of Sinuhe and other ancient Egyptian poems
    by Richard Parkinson

The best books on Ancient Egypt, recommended by Elizabeth Frood

Egyptologist Elizabeth Frood recommends books that take us away from the elite context of Egyptian history and focus on the ‘normal’ lives of Egyptians.

    The best books on Ancient Egypt, recommended by Toby Wilkinson

  • Read
    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Cultural Atlas of Ancient Egypt by John Baines and Jaromir Malek

    1

    Cultural Atlas of Ancient Egypt
    by John Baines and Jaromir Malek

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    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Ancient Egypt by Barry J. Kemp

    2

    Ancient Egypt
    by Barry J. Kemp

  • Read
    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Tutankhamun’s Armies by John Coleman Darnell and Colleen Manassa

    3

    Tutankhamun’s Armies
    by John Coleman Darnell and Colleen Manassa

  • Read
    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Akhenaten by Dominic Montserrat

    4

    Akhenaten
    by Dominic Montserrat

  • Read
    The best books on Ancient Egypt - Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids by Dorothea Arnold

    5

    Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids
    by Dorothea Arnold

The best books on Ancient Egypt, recommended by Toby Wilkinson

The Cambridge Egyptologist discusses his favourite works on Ancient Egypt, from the first book he bought on the subject to an authoritative coffee-table tome.

    Best Contemporary Egyptian Literature, recommended by Humphrey Davies

  • Read
    Best Contemporary Egyptian Literature - The Yacoubian Building by Alaa Al Aswany & Humphrey Davies

    1

    The Yacoubian Building
    by Alaa Al Aswany & Humphrey Davies

  • Read
    Best Contemporary Egyptian Literature - On Being Abbas El Abd by Ahmed Alaidy & Humphrey Davies

    2

    On Being Abbas El Abd
    by Ahmed Alaidy & Humphrey Davies

  • Read
    Best Contemporary Egyptian Literature - Life Is More Beautiful than Paradise by Khaled al-Berry

    3

    Life Is More Beautiful than Paradise
    by Khaled al-Berry

  • Read
    Best Contemporary Egyptian Literature - Taxi by Khalid Al Khamissi

    4

    Taxi
    by Khalid Al Khamissi

  • Read
    Best Contemporary Egyptian Literature - Metro by Magdy El Shafee

    5

    Metro
    by Magdy El Shafee

Best Contemporary Egyptian Literature, recommended by Humphrey Davies

One of the leading translators of contemporary Egyptian literature, Humphrey Davies, gives us his top choices.

    The best books on Egypt and America, recommended by Lloyd Gardner

  • Read
    The best books on Egypt and America - American Orientalism by Douglas Little

    1

    American Orientalism
    by Douglas Little

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    The best books on Egypt and America - Quicksand by Geoffrey Wawro

    2

    Quicksand
    by Geoffrey Wawro

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    The best books on Egypt and America - The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright

    3

    The Looming Tower
    by Lawrence Wright

  • Read
    The best books on Egypt and America - The Far Enemy by Fawaz A. Gerges

    4

    The Far Enemy
    by Fawaz A. Gerges

  • Read
    The best books on Egypt and America - Nasser: The Last Arab by Saïd K Aburish

    5

    Nasser: The Last Arab
    by Saïd K Aburish

The best books on Egypt and America, recommended by Lloyd Gardner

The historian reflects on the past 60 years of American involvement in Egypt and tells us, after the Arab Spring, what may make the coming years different

About

We ask experts to recommend the five best books in their subject and explain their selection in an interview.

This site has an archive of more than one thousand seven hundred interviews, or eight thousand book recommendations. We publish at least two new interviews per week.

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