Book Info: Friendly Fire, Tales of Today’s Egypt by Alaa Al-Aswany. Published by: The American University in Cairo Press

SINCE the phenomenal success of his novel “The Yacoubian Building,” published in 2005, author Alaa Al-Aswany has never ceased to be in the limelight. He certainly has the knack for remaining in the public eye. Charismatic and fluent in English, he is popular with the foreign press. Moreover, he also hosts a weekly cultural salon; spirited discussions that take place during the meetings generate a great interest in Egypt.

“Friendly Fire,” Aswany’s latest work (translated in English by Humphrey Davies) consists of a novella “The Isam Abd El-Ati Papers” and a collection of short stories.

In the preface, the writer gives us a fascinating account of the history of this novella. Known for his charisma and outspokenness, Aswany feels no qualms in telling us that were he not so famous this present work might not have been published. Ever since the release of “The Yacoubian Building,” he has been hassled by publishers into handing out anything he had written. This was the perfect opportunity to publish a novella that had been banned because of “confusion between imagination and truth, between the work of fiction and the sociological study.”

Aswany staunchly believes that literary characters possess an existence independent of the writer and “the behavior of a fictitious character should not be seen as an attempt to harm the image of religion or of a section of society.”

A fascinating character nicknamed Triple Mahmoud that the author met during one of his nocturnal wanderings inspires the hero of the novella, Isam Abd El-Ati. Unlike the fictitious Isam, who succeeds in getting a job, Triple Mahmoud is plagued by a series of failures. He gave up studying engineering, fine arts and cinema because, according to him, the Egyptian educational system “leads to the stifling of creativity in the student.”

“The great artists and pioneers of cinema in Egypt created the cinema first and only established the Institute of Cinema later, proving that they didn’t need the institute’s classes in order to create the cinema.”

Both characters are intelligent, but they suffer from the hypocrisy and corruption.

“The Isam Abd el-Ati Papers” is written in a biting and derisive tone. The protagonist is not afraid to say out loud what others keep to themselves.

Aswany is a great observer of humankind: He scans and dissects with great precision all levels of the Egyptian society and like his mentor Naguib Mahfouz his writing reveals in a captivating way the inner side of a changing world.

The novella’s hero talks about his father’s friends, noticing astutely that despite their feuds and quarrels they stick together and meet regularly to commiserate about the state of affairs in their society.

Aswany writes: “They needed these gatherings, because at them their sense of inadequacy was dissolved in their awareness of their common fate, and when they met none of them was embarrassed by his failure.” This excerpt highlights the universal appeal of Aswany’s literary works. The Egyptian habit of being part of a group, which defines one’s social status, echoes the gregarious instinct present in all human beings.

The short stories included in the book are also imbued with a touch of universality. “The Sorrows of Hagg Ahmad” is a sheer delight. Anyone who enjoys food can easily sympathize with Ahmad’s predicament: How many times do we have to postpone eating our favorite food because of an unexpected visitor or a series of incoming calls? In Ahmad’s case, the food in question is a glorious dish of ful medames, as the popular fava bean dish is known in Egypt.

Ahmad stretched out his hand and tore off a large mouthful of the hot, mud-oven-baked, flaky pastry swimming in butter and dipped it into the dish of beans, which Aswany describes as having passed through the many stages of preparation: Slowly stewed, released from their skins, then mashed and mixed with sliced tomatoes, garnished with just the right amount of oil, lime, pepper and cumin; turning them into a thing of delight. Ahmad half closed his eyes in relish and started chewing slowly, “like a virtuoso warming up his instrument with a few simple melodies before launching it into the world of the symphony.”

One of the most moving stories recounts the dramatic bicycle ride of Izzat Amin Iskandar. Unable to play like other boys of his age because of his artificial leg and his crutch, Izzat feigns to be happy until someone takes a bike to school. He insists on having a ride. After many attempts Izzat is settled on the bike. He made huge efforts to pedal with one leg while keeping his balance. He expressed his joy with a cry, “that sounded as though it had been long imprisoned within his chest. He was shouting, ‘See! Seeeeee!’”

Soon after, he crashed and fell down. Despite his wounds, he managed to smile and said in a low voice: “Did you see me ride the bike?”

If you enjoyed “The Yacoubian Building” you will surely enjoy reading, “Friendly Fire.”

The bittersweet narrative, peppered with biting remarks, reveals different facets of the Egyptian cultural psyche: A society that has reached a turning point, struggling to keep its Arabic identity amidst a globalizing world.