"Gihan, the daughter of a politically prominent, land-owning Egyptian family, witnesses the changes sweeping her homeland. As she looks back to the glamorous Egypt of the pashas and King Faruk, she moves forward to the police state of the colonels who seized power in 1952 and the disastrous consequences of Nasser's sequestration policies.".

"Through well-chosen portraits and telling descriptions of the era's fashions and furnishings, Serageldin recreates a world of mores from the unique perspective of an insider/outsider. She paints unforgettable portraits: the formidable Pasha, the clan patriarch who presides over Cairo House; the matchmaking Tante Zohra; and Madame Helene, the governess.

Serageldin's fictional treatment of recent Egyptian history includes key events leading to the rise of Islamic fundamentalism, such as the assassination of writer Yussef Siba'yi and the harassment of theologian Nasr Abu Zayd.".

"Gihan goes into exile in Europe and the United States but returns to Egypt in an attempt to reconcile her past and present. Charting fresh territory for the American reader, this semi-autobiographical novel is one of the most sensitive and accessible documents of historical change in Egyptian life."--BOOK JACKET.