On the occasion of the publication of Alaa Al Aswany's Democracy is the Answer, the bestselling author of the Yacoubian Building, talks to Dr Said Shehata from the BBC. 

For years before the Egyptian revolution in January 2011 Alaa Al Aswany had been a critic of the Mubarak regime. When the revolution broke out he was among the first in Tahrir Square calling for democratic reform and demanding that Hosni Mubarak stand down. Since then he has continued, through his popular weekly column for the newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm, to propound the ideals of the January 2011 revolution, embodied by the young protestors who risked everything to occupy Tahrir by his side. In his 150 articles for the newspaper over the ensuing three years – collected and translated here for the first time – Al Aswany confronts the crucial issues of the day head-on, as an increasingly stratified and divided country has sought to agree a constitution and elect a democratic government. His journalism has given him an opportunity to expose the instances of corruption, brutality, police negligence, and judicial and religious interference that have plagued the everyday lives of the Egyptian people. His columns provide a comprehensive chronicle of the post-revolutionary years of turmoil and present a portrait of a country and people in flux. Divided into three parts – the chaotic aftermath of the revolution; Mohamed Morsi's election, tenure as President and overthrow; as well as the election of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi – Democracy is the Answer is the definitive reader on Egypt's years of upheaval by one of the Middle East's foremost political voices.
Alaa Al Aswany originally trained as a dentist, and still has his own dental practice in Cairo. He worked for many years in the Yacoubian Building in Cairo, which gave its name to his debut novel. The Yacoubian Building was longlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 2006, has sold over one million copies worldwide, and was the bestselling novel in the Arab world for over five years. Al Aswany is also the author of Chicago (named by Newsday as the best translated novel of 2006) and Friendly Fire. His work has been translated into more than 30 languages, and published in over 100 countries. He speaks Arabic, English, French and Spanish. He has received many awards internationally, including the Bashrahil Award for the Arabic novel, the Kafavis Award from Greece, and the Grinzane Cavour Award from Italy. He was recently named by The Times as one of the 50 best authors to have been translated into English over the last 50 years.

Alaa Al Aswany in conversation with BBC Radio Arabic about Democracy is the Answer

Professor Robert Hillenbrand talks about Pictures of the Prophet at an event at the Nationalmuseum in Munich to On Friday, 10 November 2017, to celebrate of the launch of Professor Karl-Josef Kuschel’s
Christmas and the Qur’an.

The evening was organized by the Stiftung – Gingko Library to raise funds to support Gingko’s inter-faith projects.

For more information on the publication and Gingko please visit www.gingko.org.uk

Prof Robert Hillenbrand

Professor Carole Hillenbrand talks about ‘Mary, the mother of Jesus in
Islam’ at an event at the Nationalmuseum in Munich to On Friday, 10 November 2017, to celebrate of the launch of Professor Karl-Josef Kuschel’s Christmas and the Qur’an.

The evening was organized by the Stiftung – Gingko Library to raise funds to support Gingko’s inter-faith projects.

For more information on the publication and Gingko please visit www.gingko.org.uk

Prof Carole Hillenbrand

Professor Karl-Josef Kuschel talks about ‘Christmas and the Qur'an’ at an event at the Nationalmuseum in Munich to On Friday, 10 November 2017, to celebrate of the launch the English language version of his book of the same title (this podcast is in German)

The evening was organized by the Stiftung – Gingko Library to raise funds to support Gingko’s inter-faith projects.

For more information on the publication and Gingko please visit www.gingko.org.uk

Prof Karl - Josef Kuschel

Gingko were delighted to receive Professor Samia Mehrez from the American University in Cairo who delivered a lecture on the occasion of our book launch Essays of the Sadat Era (1974-1981), translated into English for the first time. Entitled 'Naguib Mahfouz: Between Fiction and History', the lecture addressed Mahfouz's much loved fiction but also the relationship regarding his journalistic output. Professor Mehrez explored Mahfouz's role as a civil servant, his weekly columns in Al Ahram newspaper and addressed the view that Mahfouz was too detached, lacked vision or a voice - something he is sometimes accused of.

SamiaMahfouz Podcast

A ground-breaking 10 year project, promoting dialogue with the Middle East and North Africa through education, information, the annual Gingko conference and the Gingko Library of publications.