Chronicle of a Last Summer: A Novel of Egypt" by Yasmine El Rashidi is a chronicle novel that spans three decades in Egypt, focusing on the personal and political coming-of-age of a young woman in Cairo. The story is divided into three sections set in 1984, 1998, and 2014, each capturing a different phase of the narrator's life and reflecting the shifting political landscape of Egypt. 1984: The narrator is six years old, living in a household disrupted by her father's recent disappearance. She grapples with understanding his absence while navigating a world where reruns of "Dallas" on TV are interspersed with propaganda about the late president Anwar el-Sadat. Her mother copes with the situation by retreating emotionally, leaving the young narrator feeling confused and seeking answers she cannot obtain. 1998: Now a college student and aspiring filmmaker, the narrator feels paralyzed by the political climate, where "politics is at the foreground and background of everything yet not something that can be impacted in any way". Her cousin Dido, an anarchist, stands in contrast, actively seeking change and criticizing the lingering effects of colonialism, such as the English school the narrator attends. The narrator is still affected by her father's absence, missing him deeply but resigned to it. 2014: The final section occurs after the Egyptian revolution. The narrator reflects on the turbulent years and the changes in her city and country. This part examines the aftermath of political upheaval and the complexities of survival and complicity in a society grappling with its conscience. Throughout the novel, the narrator's personal experiences are interwoven with the broader political and social changes in Egypt. The novel explores themes of family, memory, identity, and the impact of political events on individual lives. It portrays Cairo's transformation over the years, mirroring the country's political history and the "cycles of thawra—revolution—and reaction in modern Egyptian life". The novel is noted for its detailed portrayal of Egyptian culture and its minimalist yet impactful writing style.

ISBN: 9780770437299