Le Sixième Jour by Andrée Chedid
Although her first book On the Trails of my Fancy was written in English, Andrée Chedid is known for her work in French. She was born in Cairo to a Lebanese family and spent most of her adult life in France. She is a master of poetic images whose prose is mostly grounded in images of the Middle East and particularly Lebanon. Le Sixième Jour which was adapted into a film by Youssef Chahine in 1986 tells the story of Om Hassan’s struggle to save her grandson from Cholera. Victims of Cholera were said to either die or recover on the 6th day of their illness.

Le Livre Des Marges by Edmond Jabès
Edmond Jabès was a Jewish poet and writer. Born in Cairo in 1912, he was given a French colonial education. He was made Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1952 for his literary accomplishments. Having fled Egypt in 1956 following the Suez crisis, he remained in exile in France until his death in 1991. He was buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery. Le Livre Des Marges (The book of margins) is a collection of incidental pieces revolving around some of the key themes of Jabès’ work: the nature of writing, God, sacred texts.

Le tarbouche by Robert Solé
Born in Cairo Robert Solé moved to France at the age of 18. He has been working for Le Monde since the 60s, writing novels in parallel with his career as a journalist. Le tarbouche, his first novel, won him the Prix méditerrannée in 1992. It tells the story of a Cairo based Francophone Christian family during the British occupation. An aura of a cosmopolitan Egypt lingers in the pages of this highly praised book.

Les hommes oubliés de Dieu by Albert Cossery
It seems to be a trend for francophone Egyptian novelists to immigrate to France and Cossery is no exception. He published no more than 8 novels in 60 years being a writer the first of which Les hommes oubliés de Dieu is a collection of short stories recalling of the lives of those who have been forgotten by God, the poor of Cairo, beggars and artisans. A series of poignant portraits reveal Cossery’s affection for these forgotten miserable people.

L'Egyptienne by Gilbert Sinoué
Living in France since he was 19, Cairo born Sinoué is a writer, a historian and a classically trained guitarist. L'Egyptienne, the first part of a trilogy set in 18th century Egypt won the Quartier Latin prize in literature. The story of Egypt is told through that of 14 year old Shehrazade’s family and their fates in the wake of Napoleon’s invasion of their land.