Scan barcode
suzanna_m's review
challenging
hopeful
informative
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
namakurhea's review against another edition
3.0
Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Or to be exact: do we protest and fight for our rights while risking our safety and creating unrest? Or do we stay quiet and keep things stable at the expense of our rights? The Republic of False Truths” is the latest work of esteemed Egyptian write Alaa Al Aswany. The story is set ten years ago, during the 2011 Egyptian Revolution that brought down Hosni Mubarak’s autocratic regime. We follow a great ensemble of characters: from student activists, news reporters, factory workers, celebrities, and military men as they fight for their idea of the Egyptian Nation.
.
It is very sad how much the statement “we are our own enemies” is true. Entire people are opressed by opressors who are none other than the very people who should have been there to serve the country… well, we all know what’s the outcome of the Egyptian Revolution (spoiler alert: before we’ve got Hosni, now we’ve got Sisi). Hence the title “Republic of False Truths”; a country willing to put up with injustices for the sake of stability.
Am supposed to read this with the buddy read group but my curiosity got to me first
.
It is very sad how much the statement “we are our own enemies” is true. Entire people are opressed by opressors who are none other than the very people who should have been there to serve the country… well, we all know what’s the outcome of the Egyptian Revolution (spoiler alert: before we’ve got Hosni, now we’ve got Sisi). Hence the title “Republic of False Truths”; a country willing to put up with injustices for the sake of stability.
Am supposed to read this with the buddy read group but my curiosity got to me first
winterbee's review against another edition
This book was so good.
A bit confusing in the beginning because of the many characters that played important roles, but you get into it quickly.
It is a difficult book to read at times because of the heavy topic. But all the characters feel real and believable, and I loved to see all the contradictions. Especially Nurhan‘s chapters have a very particular tone that is quite cynical. The observations feel very precise and the character‘s fates and decisions touched me deeply.
A bit confusing in the beginning because of the many characters that played important roles, but you get into it quickly.
It is a difficult book to read at times because of the heavy topic. But all the characters feel real and believable, and I loved to see all the contradictions. Especially Nurhan‘s chapters have a very particular tone that is quite cynical. The observations feel very precise and the character‘s fates and decisions touched me deeply.
nmruz's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.25
sadiereadsagain's review against another edition
3.0
I read this book for the Booktube Prize 2022, Translated Works category, Octofinals. I ranked it 4th in its group of 6. My fellow judges agreed, and this book did not move forward to the quarter finals.
I was going to read [b:The Yacoubian Building|128711|The Yacoubian Building|Alaa Al Aswany|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348797639l/128711._SY75_.jpg|563704] by this author last year, but ran out of time. A friend had read it and said the misogyny in it was pretty awful, so I was glad to have swerved it. So I was disappointed to see this author pop up in my judging group.
This book tells the story of the Arab Spring in Egypt and the subsequent revolution in 2011, as seen through the eyes of a cast of different characters. We have the corrupt politician, his daughter who breaks ranks to follow a man she loves into the protests, an idealistic trade unionist, a passionate young teacher and a washed-up actor who gets drawn into the movement in a mid-life crisis fuelled desire to do something. Through their different experiences, the events are reported and we get an insight into the country at that time, and the motivations of those fighting for democracy (or not).
The plot is what saved this book, for me. I am always interested in learning about other cultures and people, and I enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about the revolution and the different groups of people in Egypt. And the writing helped that along too, being as it was accessible and often scathing. However, I could definitely see the misogyny my friend had warned me about - women in this book are simply props for the men, and the way they are written about (in particular through the eyes of mid-life crisis guy) are repugnant. And in general, male as well as female, the characters are quite one-dimensional. Given that this was a passionate uprising with high stakes for the people involved...I didn't care what happened to any of them.
I'm hopeless at DNFing, and will stagger on with most books, and so if I hadn't been obliged to read this for the Prize (but for some unknown reason had still picked it up) I probably would still have finished it. But I wasn't hugely impressed with this book.
I was going to read [b:The Yacoubian Building|128711|The Yacoubian Building|Alaa Al Aswany|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348797639l/128711._SY75_.jpg|563704] by this author last year, but ran out of time. A friend had read it and said the misogyny in it was pretty awful, so I was glad to have swerved it. So I was disappointed to see this author pop up in my judging group.
This book tells the story of the Arab Spring in Egypt and the subsequent revolution in 2011, as seen through the eyes of a cast of different characters. We have the corrupt politician, his daughter who breaks ranks to follow a man she loves into the protests, an idealistic trade unionist, a passionate young teacher and a washed-up actor who gets drawn into the movement in a mid-life crisis fuelled desire to do something. Through their different experiences, the events are reported and we get an insight into the country at that time, and the motivations of those fighting for democracy (or not).
The plot is what saved this book, for me. I am always interested in learning about other cultures and people, and I enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about the revolution and the different groups of people in Egypt. And the writing helped that along too, being as it was accessible and often scathing. However, I could definitely see the misogyny my friend had warned me about - women in this book are simply props for the men, and the way they are written about (in particular through the eyes of mid-life crisis guy) are repugnant. And in general, male as well as female, the characters are quite one-dimensional. Given that this was a passionate uprising with high stakes for the people involved...I didn't care what happened to any of them.
I'm hopeless at DNFing, and will stagger on with most books, and so if I hadn't been obliged to read this for the Prize (but for some unknown reason had still picked it up) I probably would still have finished it. But I wasn't hugely impressed with this book.
paeandbooks's review against another edition
4.0
The Republic of False Truth- Alaa Al-Aswany.
Tahrir Square, 2011.
When too much became a new tolerance, and the frog finally decided it's too much before realizing it's too weak to jump out from boiling water. For Hosni Mubarak government, 29 years is the boiling point.
The story opens with General Ahmad AlThe Republic of False Truth- Alaa Al-Aswany.
Tahrir Square, 2011.
When too much became a new tolerance, and the frog finally decided it's too much before realizing it's too weak to jump out from boiling water. For Hosniwany who seems like a good, demure, religious man for the first page, and got my favor got overturned in few lines. He's a good officer for Mobarak government ; a pious, but heartless one, hence the torture and other morally grey actions are just like breathing to him. He has a politically versed daughter, Danya, and she started to see wrong things done by her dad and the government.
Soon other characters starts to come in play; Mazen, Asmaa, Essam Shaalan (which I almost believed to be Mohamad Mosri Eissa), with some of them yield the same objective for different reason.
Alaa Al Aswany superpower is crazy; everything was in line with historical evengs. Also the women torture details. Holy shit the pictures were terrifying. At first I was a little skeptical, afraid of misrepresentation of muslim buf the author did well.
Tahrir Square, 2011.
When too much became a new tolerance, and the frog finally decided it's too much before realizing it's too weak to jump out from boiling water. For Hosni Mubarak government, 29 years is the boiling point.
The story opens with General Ahmad AlThe Republic of False Truth- Alaa Al-Aswany.
Tahrir Square, 2011.
When too much became a new tolerance, and the frog finally decided it's too much before realizing it's too weak to jump out from boiling water. For Hosniwany who seems like a good, demure, religious man for the first page, and got my favor got overturned in few lines. He's a good officer for Mobarak government ; a pious, but heartless one, hence the torture and other morally grey actions are just like breathing to him. He has a politically versed daughter, Danya, and she started to see wrong things done by her dad and the government.
Soon other characters starts to come in play; Mazen, Asmaa, Essam Shaalan (which I almost believed to be Mohamad Mosri Eissa), with some of them yield the same objective for different reason.
Alaa Al Aswany superpower is crazy; everything was in line with historical evengs. Also the women torture details. Holy shit the pictures were terrifying. At first I was a little skeptical, afraid of misrepresentation of muslim buf the author did well.
hootreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
khader's review against another edition
4.0
قررتُ عندما قرأت "نادي السيارات" بأني لن اقرأ لـ "علاء الاسواني" مجدداً لاني وجدتها رواية سيئة.
واليوم وبعد ان منحت "الاسواني" صحبة "جمهورية كأن" فرصة جديدة، اكتشفت اني ظلمته وتعجلت النتائج واستبقتها، وتناسيت أننا جميعاً نُخطأ ونقع احياناً ، ولكن قلة من لا يرتكبون الخطأ مجدداً ويجب ان نمنحهم فرصة، وهذا ينطبق ليس فقط على الحياة والاشخاص وايضاً على من ينقلون الحياة والاشخاص الى الكتب كي نعيشها.
واليوم "الاسواني" لم يخذلني واستحق الفرصة عن جدارة، وبت اعرف لماذا منعت هذه الرواية في مصر ولا زالت ممنوعة ولماذا علينا ان نشكر "دار الآداب" لانها امتلكت الجرأة كي تواجه "جمهورية كأن".
رائعة وتستحق القراءة. وعلينا دائماً ان تنذكر... الجميع يستحق فرصة أخرى.
واليوم وبعد ان منحت "الاسواني" صحبة "جمهورية كأن" فرصة جديدة، اكتشفت اني ظلمته وتعجلت النتائج واستبقتها، وتناسيت أننا جميعاً نُخطأ ونقع احياناً ، ولكن قلة من لا يرتكبون الخطأ مجدداً ويجب ان نمنحهم فرصة، وهذا ينطبق ليس فقط على الحياة والاشخاص وايضاً على من ينقلون الحياة والاشخاص الى الكتب كي نعيشها.
واليوم "الاسواني" لم يخذلني واستحق الفرصة عن جدارة، وبت اعرف لماذا منعت هذه الرواية في مصر ولا زالت ممنوعة ولماذا علينا ان نشكر "دار الآداب" لانها امتلكت الجرأة كي تواجه "جمهورية كأن".
رائعة وتستحق القراءة. وعلينا دائماً ان تنذكر... الجميع يستحق فرصة أخرى.
lucyebradley7's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
mortaldays's review against another edition
Just not the book for me at the moment, looking to pick it up again the future!