This book is as interesting for what it teaches about Egypt and (some) Egyptians as it is for being an insight into Ghali's character. I started it with only little knowledge about Egypt in the 50s and learned a lot; I especially enjoyed the sense of place, and how the narrator constantly feels torn between worlds.

However, it is also this very same narrator that made reading some passages a chore: this constant bitterness, fake levity and general dejectedness makes for a difficult read, although it is the whole point of the book. (The general sexism didn't help either.)

On the whole, I would probably recommend it, but don't expect an easy ride: it is a dark period of Egyptian history in which lots of certainties are destroyed. As a consequence, the characters are left unmoored, and the reader certainly feels so by the end.