Egypt + 100: Stories from a Century After Tahrir. edited by Ahmed Naji. 2024
Egypt + 100
RATED 63% POSITIVE. STORY SCORE 3.6 OF 5
12 STORIES : 3 GREAT / 4 GOOD / 2 AVERAGE / 3 POOR / 0 DNF
In the introduction, editor Ahmed Naji alludes to a long history of Egyptian Science Fiction. This is one of the highlights of the book, as I came across authors who’s work I love forward to exploring: Nihad Sherif, Dr. Mustafa Mahmoud, Rauof Wasfi, Sabri Mousa, Nabil Farouk, and Dr. Ahmed Khaled Tawfik.
If only this anthology had been an overview of that countries SF history. Instead we have a number of original stories on one common theme.
“We asked all the contributors to imagine the Egypt of January 25th 2011 only a hundred years later – extrapolated, as Le Guin would say, but based on a political extrapolation of that moment in time, more than a scientific one. We didn’t guide or instruct the writers and only demanded one thing: that all the stories be set a century after the revolution, in January 2111. The result is a series of visions of the future inspired by the dreams and nightmares of the present.” — Naji, Ahmed (from the introduction
With such instructions, the stories often feel limiting. There are ‘infodump’ pages in nearly every story, trying to catch the reader up to the present. Rarely are these sequences done to the standard that SF readers expect. Frequently you have characters who are surprised ‘the people in the past ever lived like that.’ This isn’t uncommon sentiments in sci-fi — even used in the 1940s and 50s — but almost always better integrated in those stories. Many of the stories felt like they needed more editorial assistance before publication.
But it is not all bad. Three stories are added to my all-time great list.
The Wilderness Facilities by Mansoura Ez-Eldin. Translated by Paul Starkey. The anthology opens with a sprawling, dense, and deep story about the ways that architecture and city planning can oppress a population. The story opens on the murder of a woman who dared to go shopping in person, instead of letting the robots do it. We are then introduce to an investigator who is part of the State’s machinery. Along the way we learn about a clear prison with no privacy and the savage wild people just outside the city’s walls. Of course, as we already knew, the line between civilization and savagery is within each human heart.
Drowning by Heba Khamis. Translated by Maisa Almanasreh. Haunting short story of a girl saved from death in the middle of a violent protest. Years later, Cairo is flooding red with a beast below.
Unicorn 2512 by Nora Nagi. Translated by Mayada Ibrahim. A 50 year old woman (Unicorn2512) lives her entire life in the Metaverse with her body hooked up to something like life-support. She comes out to witness the death of her mother in the real world. Her mother is one of the last people to opt out of the Metaverse and live their lives and deaths in the House of Noncompliance. This moment affects Unicorn and she decides to write something. A rare hopeful story in this anthology.
Egypt + 100
12 STORIES : 3 GREAT / 4 GOOD / 2 AVERAGE / 3 POOR / 0 DNF
The Wilderness Facilities by Mansoura Ez-Eldin Translated by Paul Starkey
Great. The anthology opens with a sprawling, dense, and deep story about the ways that architecture and city planning can oppress a population. The story opens on the murder of a woman who dared to go shopping in person, instead of letting the robots do it. We are then introduce to an investigator who is part of the State’s machinery. Along the way we learn about a clear prison with no privacy and the savage wild people just outside the city’s walls. Of course, as we already knew, the line between civilization and savagery is within each human heart.
Drowning by Heba Khamis Translated by Maisa Almanasreh
Great. Haunting short story of a girl saved from death in the middle of a violent protest. Years later, Cairo is flooding red with a beast below.
Everything is Great in Rome by Ahmed El-Fakharany Translated by Robin Moger
Good. The Coliseum appear in Cairo and we follow a vicious gladiator, haunted by the people he’s killed, on a trip to the President’s palace.
The Mistake by Mohamed Kheir Translated by Andrew Leber
Good. In a world where having children is seen as supporting the regime, a man travels public transportation with his daughter. Making sure he refers to her as a “mistake.”
The Sky Room by Azza Sultan Translated by Elisabeth Jaquette
Average. A world of mirrors, reflections, and medical tourism in which people get outside only one day per week.
Encounter with the White Rabbit by Michel Hanna Translated by Mohammed Ghalayini
Good. A man travels by hover tuktuks outside the “safety” of the Capital into a climate drowned Cairo to find the last drugs that can help with his wife’s cancer. Great setting and visuals, but a very pedestrian cyberpunky story.
The Solitude of Prince Boudi by Ahmed Wael Translated by Raphael Cohen
Good. In a world of techno-AI-dystopia lacking data sovereignty, climate change is being reversed. The story follows a naive descendent of a self-mythologizing back from Russia to Egypt. He is drawn into hustle/explotation helpless due to the effect of false family myths. Just short of being great with pacing issues being the main problem.
God Only Knows by Belal Fadl Translated by Raph Cormack
Poor. A fiction memoir of a mufti who discusses the fatwas of his father and grandfather. This is a laundry list of liberalization of Islam. No fasting during Ramadan. Abortion is okay. Homosexually is okay. Eating pork is okay. This isn’t really a story.
Unicorn 2512 by Nora Nagi Translated by Mayada Ibrahim
Great. A 50 year old woman (Unicorn2512) lives her entire life in the Metaverse with her body hooked up to something like life-support. She comes out to witness the death of her mother in the real world. Her mother is one of the last people to opt out of the Metaverse and live their lives and deaths in the House of Noncompliance. This moment affects Unicorn and she decides to write something. A rare hopeful story in this anthology.
Mama by Camellia Hussein Translated by Basma Ghalayini
Poor. A brutal depiction of madness and abortion in a world where the State is Mama and all children must be handed over to the State.
Oral History of a Past, Obsolete and Forgotten by Yasmine El Rashidi
Average. Reminiscences of a grandmother’s role in The Arab Spring, with lots of focus on how life and technology has changed in the subsequent 100 years.
The Tanta White People Museum by Ahmed Naji Translated by Rana Asfour
Poor. A museum of White People culture is hit with a terrorist bombing. While the director of the museum tries to get onsite, she thinks about the history that lead white people to be refugees around the world. The authors seems obsessed with 2024 USA politics (Donald Trump etc) but seems to lack knowledge of how America functions. Unless it is intentional for poorly executed comedy, the result ends up as bigotry and racism. It is really a sad situation because the story could have been interesting.
