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Product Description
John Coleman, Sunday Times
Book Description
The Mamur Zapt, head of Cairo's CID in the heydey of (the indirect) British rule, focused on political, not police, matters. With the bustling new century, the loosening of imperial ties, and the rise of nationalism, his was a busy office. The attempted assassination of a veteran politician raises the spectre of a major terrorist statement at the capital's principal religious festival where the faithful celebrate the Return of the Holy Carpet from Mecca.
Easily navigating multiple nationalities, three principal languages, and four competing legal systems, not to mention the intricacies of shadow and actual governments, Captain Owen, the Welsh incumbent, bolsters the Mamur Zapt's office with the aid of a host of memorable characters.
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Customer Reviews
The central character is Gareth Owen, a young Welshman who is the Mamur Zapt -- the title given the (British) head of Cairo's secret police. The central theme is the tension between the British who governed Egypt at the time and the Egyptian people in whose name they governed.
"The Return of the Carpet" is the first in the series. Frequent appearances are made throughout the series by the Mamur Zapt's Egyptian counterpart in the office of the city prosecutor, by Owen's bosses, by members of Eqypt's dissolute royal family, by Owen's aristocratic and fiercely independent Egyptian paramour and by assorted members of Cairo's working class.
The stories are racy, wittily understated and steeped in the attitudes and rhythms of daily life in the Cairo of 100 years ago. Pearce's voice and his ear for dialogue are spot-on. The humor emerges naturally in his exploration of the complex relations between the English and native Eqyptians of all classes.
This is popular literature of the highest order. The books are, if possible, even more entertaining if you listen to the audio recordings produced, I believe, by Recorded Books.
A case of granades goes astray from an Army storage. The biggest fear--that the weapons will be used by terrorists for assasinations--seems accurate. Owen, inexperienced but intelligent, is hampered by many foreign and local fingers in the heady Egyptian pie in the investigation.
This pleasant tale of suspense, local color, politics, and adventure is told with touches of humor and restraint of the old English tradition.
--inotherworlds.com
And, I will be reading more. The writing was wonderful, the atmosphere intense, and each time I put this book down it was with the anticipation of picking it up again.
The political background is fascinating, the social background equally so, especially in terms of Egyptian women.
This is Egypt on the cusp of becoming its own country again - still dealing with British and French and Turkish influences and power. Budding Nationalism, the educated young stirring.
Yet old traditions survive, such as the wonderful ceremonies connected to The Return of the Carpet of the title.
The Mamur Zapt, already a bit separate as a Welshman among the English military rulers, walks a tightrope between all the factions, with a keen insight into human nature, no matter what the culture, and how to persuade people to do what needs to be done.
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