Amir Taz Palace
27 Al-Syoufiya St, off Al-Salebiya St, Al-Khalifa district, Tel 02 2514 2581
Tues 28, 6.30pm: Zahi Hawass Foundation for Antiquities and Heritage salon.
American University in Cairo
New Cairo Campus
The Sullivan Lounge
Thurs 23, 1pm - 2pm: Professor of Practice Ahdaf Soueif, one of our most important living Egyptian novelists, will discuss her groundbreaking, wide-ranging writing and activism. Professor Soueif’s brilliant bestselling novel The Map of Love, which appears on The American University in Cairo’s ECLT and core curricula, was nominated for the Booker Prize and translated into dozens of languages. Her other works of fiction and nonfiction include In the Eye of the Sun, I Think of You, Cairo: Memoir of a City Transformed and This is Not a Border: Reportage & Reflection from the Palestine Festival of Literature. Don’t miss this very special opportunity to ask Professor Soueif questions about the art and craft of writing.
Mon 27, 1pm – 2pm: “Nasserism, Global Mexico and the Birth of a Latin-African Politics” Sarah Quesada will explain in this talk how Egypt’s first president, Gamal Abdel-Nasser, introduced a notion of Third World solidarity to Mexico and Latin America more broadly as early as the 1950s.
The Gerhart Theatre
Thurs 23, 1pm - 2pm: “An Artist Talk by Ahmed Shawky Hassan” Ahmed Shawky Hassan (born 1989, Ismailia, Egypt) is an artist and writer whose practice explores the impact of historical and contemporary narratives on shaping dominant perceptions in the arts. His work investigates how these narratives spread, questioning the authority that contributes to their establishment. He employs diverse mediums, including texts, sculptures, videos, photographs, drawings, installations and books.
Tues 28, 7pm – 8pm (Cairo Time): “Egyptian Film Male Stars in the Nasser Era” a virtual book talk by Dr. Samar Abdel-Rahman, an exploration of male stardom in Egyptian cinema during the transformative years following the 1952 revolution and the rule of Gamal Abdel-Nasser. Drawing on cultural and film studies, the book examines the lives and careers of three iconic stars—Omar Sharif, Ismail Yassin, and Farid Shawqi—and how their films reflected changing ideas of masculinity, national identity, and modernity during this pivotal period in Egypt’s history. The talk will feature a presentation by the author followed by a Q&A with the audience. The link is https://e.cglink.me/2kZ/r300120744
Cervantes Institute
20 Boulos Hanna St, Dokki, Tel 02 3760 1746
Thurs 23, 1pm-7pm: Cervantes Institute celebrates the World Book Day 2026 with a special and diverse cultural programme offers group readings, recreational activities, a musical performance, and a rich dialogue with the Spanish writer Irene Vallejo about her famous book The Invention of Books: The Infinite in Papyrus, which explores the history of books and their connection to the city of Alexandria as a key stop on this journey. The events begin at 1pm with a mini-exhibition of the library’s holdings, accompanied by recreational activities for Spanish language students. At 3pm, a group reading of Miguel de Cervantes' famous novel Don Quixote, considered one of the greatest literary works in history, will take place in both Arabic and Spanish. Participants will read the text aloud to the audience until 7pm, and each reader will receive a small gift. At 7pm, the audience will meet with author Vallejo to discuss her book and to talk about the history of books and the world of reading in a dialogue, moderated by translator Asmaa Gamal Abdel- Nasser, with the participation of the book’s Arabic translator, Mark Gamal. The day will conclude at 8:30pm with a short concert entitled "The Spirit of Spain," presented by Egyptian musician and guitarist Ahmed Abdel-Rahman, who specializes in Spanish guitar. He will take the audience on a musical journey through classical and modern music from Spain and Spanish-speaking Latin American countries.
The Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Cairo (NVIC)
1 Dr. Mahmoud Azmi St, Zamalek, Tel 02 2738 2522
Thurs 23, 6pm: “Seeking Bread and Fortune in Port Said” lecture by Professor of History at the University of Oslo Lucia Carminati.
Her first book, Seeking Bread and Fortune in Port Said. Labor Migration and the Making of the Suez Canal, 1859–1906, has won the 2024 Best Book in Urban History (excluding the U.S., Canada, and Europe) of the Urban History Association. Through moments of light and darkness, Port Said kept growing and puzzling observers: was it a showcase of modernity or a mere backwater? Was it truly a part of Egypt? And was -indeed is- it exceptional? This talk engages with these questions as it bridges the Carminati's book’s findings with some lines for future research.
Soft Power Productions Foundation
3 Wahib Doss St, Maadi Alsarayat, Baraka Bank building
Thurs 23, 6pm: The cultural salon of the Soft Power Productions Foundation organizes a seminar titled, “The Role of Law in Protecting the Human Rights and the State” featuring novelist and head of the Soft Power Productions Foundation Mona Zaki, Former Head of the Supreme State Security Criminal Court and Head of the Friends of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization Association Mohamed Shereen Fahmy, with Former head of the National Council for Human Rights Moushira Khattab.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 23 April, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.
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