The Yacoubian building is a novel from Arab language which tells the story of the life and politics in Cairo , humorously attacking the decays in social and political scenario. It is based on the lives of the inhabitants of a building named ‘Yacoubian Building’ situated in Suleiman Pasha street in Cairo. The author is Alaa al Aswani. It happened that I have seen the film based on this book a few years back and as the story unfolds the characters from the movie were living in my mind.
Zakey Bey, an aristocrat of olden days who studied engineering in Paris , who is having an office in the building, Hatim Rashid the chief editor of the News paper El Cairo,Taha the young man who wanted to rise in life and to become a police officer and finally became an extremist, Busyana his child hood sweet heart are the main characters in this novel. The story intertwines through their lives and discusses their personal lives without any hesitation.
The story telling style is very lucid and can be read by losing yourself in imageries created by the vibrant characters.