Mohamed Mansi Qandil ( ar, محمد المنسي قنديل, born in 1946 in

al-Mahalla al-Kubra El Mahalla El Kubra ( ar, المحلة الكبرى, , , ) – commonly shortened to ' – is the largest city of the Gharbia Governorate and in the Nile Delta, with a population of 535,278 as of 2012. It is a large industrial and agricultural cit ...

) is an

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

novelist and author.

Early life

His father was a simple labourer. Qandil went to medical school and worked as a country doctor before turning to writing as a full-time profession. He lived in

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

for several years, where he was an editor at the monthly magazine '' Al Arabi''. As of 2015 he was the editor of the Egyptian magazine '' Ibdaa''. He now lives in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Career

Qandil's first novel was called ''Breaking of the Spirit'' and dealt with the subject of workers' unrest in the delta region. Another novel ''Moon Over Samarqand'' was inspired by a conversation with a taxi driver he had met in

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...

. This novel won the

Sawiris Foundation Award The Sawiris Cultural Award is an Egyptian literary prize, awarded annually by the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development. It was inaugurated in 2005 with prizes in two categories: novels and short stories. Since then, additional categories in s ...

in 2006. An English translation of ''Moon over Samarqand'' by Jennifer Peterson has been published by

AUC Press The American University in Cairo Press (AUCP, AUC Press) is the leading English-language publisher in the Middle East. The largest translator of Arabic literature in the world, AUC Press has a reputation for carefully selecting and translating t ...

. His 2010 novel ''A Cloudy Day on the West Side'' was shortlisted for the

Arabic Booker Prize The International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) ( ar, الجائزة العالمية للرواية العربية) is the most prestigious and important literary prize in the Arab world. Its aim is to reward excellence in contemporary Arabic ...

. An English translation by Barbara Romaine has been published by

Syracuse University Press Syracuse University Press, founded in 1943, is a university press that is part of Syracuse University. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. History SUP was formed in August 1943 when president William P. Tolley pro ...

.Profile on Syracuse University Press website
/ref> Apart from novels, Qandil has also published short story collections and children's books.

Awards and honours

Qandil won the

Egyptian State Incentive Award Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

in 1988.

Selected works

* ''Breaking of the Spirit'' (novel) * ''Moon over Samarqand'' (novel) * ''A Cloudy Day on the West Side'' (novel) * ''A Dinner with Aisha'' (short stories)

References

1946 births Egyptian novelists Egyptian male short story writers Egyptian short story writers Living people 20th-century Egyptian physicians 20th-century Egyptian writers 21st-century Egyptian writers Egyptian children's writers {{Egypt-writer-stub