Yehya Safwat, Salon Gharib (Gharib’s Barbershop), Cairo: Kayan Publishing, 2025, pp.240
Horror fiction often relies on familiar tools such as dark settings, sudden shocks, and graphic scenes intended to terrify the reader. In Gharib’s Barbershop, however, Yehya Safwat takes a different approach. Rather than relying solely on conventional horror, he crafts a narrative driven by psychological tension, mystery and the unsettling power of suggestion. The result is a novel that blurs the line between imagination and reality, drawing readers into a world where the most disturbing events are not always supernatural, but may lie within the human mind itself.
The story follows Fathy, a communications engineer whose life appears ordinary. At the beginning of the novel, Fathy is preparing to ask for the hand of the woman he loves. But before he has had a chance to do so, on his way home, he comes across a strange barbershop that seems to have appeared out of nowhere. The shop is unusual in several ways. It contains only one chair, one barber, and most strikingly, no mirror, a detail that immediately signals that this is not an ordinary place.
Inside the shop, Fathy meets the mysterious barber, Gharib, who begins telling him a series of strange stories. Each story unfolds in its own chapter and carries elements of horror, thriller or superstition. At first, the stories seem like nothing more than unsettling tales meant to entertain or intrigue the listener. Yet once Fathy leaves the shop, he begins to notice strange parallels between the tales he has heard and the events occurring in his own life.
For some authors, the inspiration for a novel comes from real-life situations, while others are moved by purely fictional ideas. For Safwat, it was a “mix of both.” The initial spark came when his eyes fell on an abandoned shop, which helped him choose the main setting and symbol of the novel, while the seven stories narrated by the barber drew on both reality and imagination. “The initial idea was to write short stories that seem separate but are actually parts of a larger story. All my novels contain some elements of reality,” he clarified.
Some readers were impressed by the novel’s cover and title, both of which refer to key events. The title, Gharib’s Barbershop, is particularly clever, as the word gharib carries many layers. It can mean a “stranger” as well as referring to the name of barber, Gharib, and it can also work as an adjective describing the barbershop as strange. The cover appears ordinary at first glance, yet it subtly hints at hidden stories, with the barber chosen by the author to be their narrator. “Barbers are among the most famous storytellers and have a large stock of stories. Personally, I once met one who had a very vivid imagination,” Safwat said.
When building his characters, Safwat tends to preserve an element of mystery. While he gives them traits that reveal their personalities, he also develops them through their actions and lives. For the character of Gharib, the author ensured this approach was fully realised. “There were some core elements to his character, some stemming from his role as a storyteller, and others from his very nature,” Safwat noted. “Gharib is more than just a barber; he is an ambiguous entity whose true nature will become clearer in the next novel.”
Plot events in some horror stories often unfold as surprises, sometimes seeming unplanned even by their authors. However, Safwat had a clear roadmap for Gharib’s Barbershop, with a defined direction and an ending known from the start. He explained that the seven stories included in the novel were precisely selected. “I carefully chose the stories so they would reflect the key stages of the protagonist’s journey and the distinctive plot that inspired me.”
Among the tales the barber shares with Fathy and the readers, “The Forgotten” was the most complex for Safwat to write, due to its dark and brutal nature as well as its role as the novel’s central story. Set in an underground prison cell, where the prisoners are called the Forgotten because they have been neglected and abandoned for years, it is also “the story with the most drama and with roots that extend far beyond the written lines”, Safwat says.
Another story narrated by the barber, carrying deep themes and meanings, is “Da-ta-ta”, named after the babbling of a baby. It explores how desperation can turn a person’s life upside down. The story follows a lawyer who pursues a rural superstition in her quest to have a child. “This story explores the level of despair a person can reach, despair that may push them to go against their own principles and education,” Safwat said. The inclusion of superstition in the novel serves both as a horror element and a message. The author sees it as a reflection of belief shaping decisions: “If your belief goes against logic, the resulting decision will also be illogical.”
In comparison with many contemporary horror stories, Gharib’s Barbershop stands out for its distinctive approach. Rather than depending on conventional horror imagery such as bloodshed, violent confrontations, or exaggerated terror, the novel focuses on psychological fear and intellectual uncertainty. The horror emerges from confusion, doubt and the unsettling feeling that reality itself may not be as stable as it appears. “I try to avoid Western influences, clichés, repetitive patterns, and recycled plots. I aim for my work to carry a message, not just provide meaningless thrills,” Safwat explained.
Despite these strengths, the novel may leave some readers with unanswered questions. Some narrative elements appear only briefly or without a full explanation, creating moments where some readers might want more clarity. This is particularly noticeable in the ending, which arrives somewhat abruptly and leaves too much open to interpretation. While ambiguity can be a powerful literary tool, some readers may feel that the conclusion raises more questions than it resolves.
Reactions to the ending are therefore likely to vary. Some readers may appreciate the mysterious tone and see the open ending as an invitation to reflect on the story’s deeper meanings. Others may feel the novel would have benefited from a more detailed resolution, clarifying the events surrounding Fathy. For Safwat, open endings are preferable, as they give the impression that the world the reader inhabited for several hundred pages continues to exist after finishing the book. “The ending isn’t as open as it seems,” he argued. “The final interpretation exists, the reader just has to look for it.” This perspective reflects not only his approach as an author but also as a reader: “I love stories that make me interact with them and participate in solving them. I also enjoy brain games.”
Gharib’s Barbershop is currently on its way to being adapted for the screen, offering a new challenge for Safwat. Though the project is still in its early stages, he describes it as a unique experience that allows the stories to reveal new dimensions. “It allows us to see other dimensions of the stories, especially the visual and auditory aspects alongside the written narrative,” Safwat explained, highlighting how the adaptation brings the world of the novel to life in ways that text alone cannot.
For readers stepping into the world of literary horror for the first time, Safwat emphasises the importance of preparation. “To enjoy a horror novel, you must be mentally and emotionally ready for it,” he says, cautioning that if a story lacks logic — a flaw he strives to avoid in his own work — readers should steer clear. Ultimately, he recommends novels that carry a message, regardless of genre, ensuring that the experience is both thrilling and meaningful. In the end, Gharib’s Barbershop offers readers more than just suspense, tension and horror. The novel also conveys a deeper message that while strange things may occur in the world around us, the interpretation of those events ultimately lies within our own minds.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 2 April, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.
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