{"product_id":"hat-isa-ibn-hisham-told-us-or-a-period-of-time","title":"What Isa ibn Hisham Told Us or A Period of Time","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMuhammad al-Muwaylihi\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRoger Allen (translation)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePaperback, 524 pages\u003cbr\u003eEnglish-only edition\u003cbr\u003e9781479840915\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTrenchant and witty critiques of life in Cairo under British rule\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhat ʿĪsā ibn Hishām Told Us\u003c\/em\u003e is a masterpiece of early twentieth-century Arabic prose. Penned by the Egyptian journalist Muḥammad al-Muwayliḥī, this highly original work was first introduced in serialized form in his family’s pioneering newspaper \u003cem\u003eMiṣbāḥ al-Sharq\u003c\/em\u003e (Light of the East) and later published in book form in 1907. Widely hailed for its erudition and mordant wit, \u003cem\u003eWhat ʿĪsā ibn Hishām Told Us\u003c\/em\u003e was embraced by Egypt’s burgeoning reading public and soon became required reading for generations of school students.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBridging classical genres and modern Arabic fiction, \u003cem\u003eWhat ʿĪsā ibn Hishām Told Us\u003c\/em\u003e is divided into two parts. Sarcastic in tone and critical in outlook, the first part of the book relates the excursions of its narrator, ʿĪsā ibn Hishām, and his companion, the Pasha, through a rapidly westernizing Cairo and provides vivid commentary on a society negotiating—however imperfectly—the clash between traditional norms and imported cultural values. The second half takes the narrator to Paris to visit the Exposition Universelle of 1900, where al-Muwaylihi casts a critical eye on European society, modernity, and the role of Western imperialism as it ripples across the globe.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePaving the way for the modern Arabic novel, \u003cem\u003eWhat ʿĪsā ibn Hishām Told Us\u003c\/em\u003e is invaluable both for its insight into colonial Egypt and its pioneering role in Arabic literary history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Library of Arabic Literature","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39840219693091,"sku":"9781479840915","price":27.0,"currency_code":"SGD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2514\/8624\/products\/DSC_1336.jpg?v=1666422542","url":"https:\/\/wardahbooks.mom\/products\/hat-isa-ibn-hisham-told-us-or-a-period-of-time","provider":"Wardah Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}