“Weird and wild.” —BookRiot“An effective critique of authoritarianism.” —NPR“Equal parts dystopia, satire, and allegory.—Los Angeles Review of BooksSet against the backdrop of a failed political uprising in Egypt, this chilling debut evokes Orwellian dystopia, Kafkaesque surrealism, and a very real vision of life after the Arab Spring.In a surreal, but familiar, vision of modern day Egypt, a centralized authority known as ‘the Gate’ has risen to power in the aftermath of the ‘Disgraceful Events,’ a failed popular uprising. Citizens are required to obtain permission from the Gate in order to take care of even the most basic of their daily affairs, yet the Gate never opens, and the queue in front of it grows longer.Citizens from all walks of life mix and wait in the sun: a revolutionary journalist, a sheikh, a poor woman concerned for her daughter’s health, and even the brother of a security officer killed in clashes with protestors. Among them is Yehia, a man who was shot during the Events and is waiting for permission from the Gate to remove a bullet that remains lodged in his pelvis. Yehia’s health steadily declines, yet at every turn, officials refuse to assist him, actively denying the very existence of the bullet.Ultimately it is Tarek, the principled doctor tending to Yehia’s case, who must decide whether to follow protocol as he has always done, or to disobey the law and risk his career to operate on Yehia and save his life.Written with dark, subtle humor, The Queue describes the sinister nature of authoritarianism, and illuminates the way that absolute authority manipulates information, mobilizes others in service to it, and fails to uphold the rights of even those faithful to it.
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The Queue
“Weird and wild.” —BookRiot“An effective critique of authoritarianism.” —NPR“Equal parts dystopia, satire, and allegory.—Los Angeles Review of BooksSet against the backdrop of a failed political uprising in Egypt, this chilling debut evokes Orwellian dystopia, Kafkaesque surrealism, and a very real vision of life after the Arab Spring.In a surreal, but familiar, vision of modern day Egypt, a centralized authority known as ‘the Gate’ has risen to power in the aftermath of the ‘Disgraceful Events,’ a failed popular uprising. Citizens are required to obtain permission from the Gate in order to take care of even the most basic of their daily affairs, yet the Gate never opens, and the queue in front of it grows longer.Citizens from all walks of life mix and wait in the sun: a revolutionary journalist, a sheikh, a poor woman concerned for her daughter’s health, and even the brother of a security officer killed in clashes with protestors. Among them is Yehia, a man who was shot during the Events and is waiting for permission from the Gate to remove a bullet that remains lodged in his pelvis. Yehia’s health steadily declines, yet at every turn, officials refuse to assist him, actively denying the very existence of the bullet.Ultimately it is Tarek, the principled doctor tending to Yehia’s case, who must decide whether to follow protocol as he has always done, or to disobey the law and risk his career to operate on Yehia and save his life.Written with dark, subtle humor, The Queue describes the sinister nature of authoritarianism, and illuminates the way that absolute authority manipulates information, mobilizes others in service to it, and fails to uphold the rights of even those faithful to it.
Popular Reviews(1)
Reviewed by HannaWas war denn das für ein Buch? Kafka meets 1984 ist das erste was mir dazu in den Kopf kam, der Klappentext stellt auch einen Bezug zu George Orwell her. Es geht um Diktatur, Propaganda, Überwachung und Manipulation. Publiziert 2016, kurz nach dem Höhepunkt des Arabischen Frühlings liegt es natürlich nahe, den Roman im Kontext dieser politischen Ereignisse zu lesen und einige subtil vermittelte Aspekte, entfalten auch erst dadurch ihre volle Bedeutung; trotzdem ist es mir wichtig festzuhalten, dass die darin behandelten Themen bis heute relevant und aktuell sind – und das keineswegs nur im „Nahen Osten“! Im Roman lernen wir die Geschichte verschiedener Menschen kennen, die alle darauf warten ihre bürokratischen Angelegenheiten zu erledigen, doch die oberste Verwaltungsinstanz, „the gate“, hat seit den Unruhen (offiziell als „Disgraceful Events“ bezeichnet) geschlossen und so wird die Schlange immer länger. Zwischen den Wartenden entwickeln sich verschiedene Beziehungen und immer wieder gibt es Gerüchte, irgendwann beginnen Menschen zu verschwinden … immer wenn man denkt, man hat verstanden, was vor sich geht, kommt ein neues Detail hinzu und das Ende hat mich dann auch ganz schön ratlos und mit viel Gesprächsbedarf zurückgelassen. Ich weiß zwar nicht, ob ich das Buch jemandem empfehlen würde, der gerade in einer Leseflaute steckt, aber es ist ohne Zweifel einen interessante, vielschichtige Lektüre, die zum Nachdenken anregt – vor allem wenn man politische Romane und Dystopien mag.