Book Review: Shelf Life, Chronicles of a Cairo Bookseller
Normally I read a pretty healthy mix of fiction and non-fiction. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it still leans heavy on the fiction side, but this year for some reason, I’ve read so little non-fiction. Maybe I needed to escape more? However, I do love a good memoir, and Shelf Life: Chronicles of a Cairo Bookseller has been sitting on my shelf for a while. I decided to pick it up on whim this week, and I’m so glad I did! I thoroughly enjoyed it even if it did have a few too many f-bombs. It tells the story of Nadia founding one of the largest indie bookstores in Egypt with two other women (her sister and a friend). Let me tell you, it made me never want to start a business in Egypt as a woman. So many challenges and hardships, but it was incredible to see her journey and seeing her discover the right time to walk away from it all.
Things to Know:
Memoir
Rampant sexism, bribery, censorship, etc.
I shot up in bed in glee when I read her mention of Third Places, and that this was what they set out to create with Diwan, their bookstore. I was hopping mad reading about the way she and her fellow female cofounders were treated trying to get their store up and running, or the fact that a cookbook title from Jamie Oliver caused so much trouble to get through customs.
“But in recent decades, acceptance of otherness and tolerance of religious difference seem to have faded. I wonder if tolerance is learned, like reading—a habit ingrained in Hind and me from a young age. Perhaps others lack the privilege.”
Nadia has a very blunt and irreverent way of writing and doesn’t shy away from cursing. It was a bit jarring, but somewhat refreshing. She just tells it like it is. As a marketer, it was fascinating to hear how successful the custom art designed shopping bags were for word-of-mouth marketing and establishing their brand beyond Cairo. It’s a quick read, and overall reading this made me want to immediately add Diwan to my list of places to visit in Egypt. I hope to have the chance to do so one day! Four stars.
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