YUSUF ABU RAYYA, born in Hihya in the Nile Delta in 1955, is the author of six short story collections, five novels, and seven books for children. He has been on the governing board of the Egyptian branch of PEN International since 1995. R. NEIL HEWISON is the translator of City of Love and Ashes by Yusuf Idris (AUC Press, 1998), and the author of The Fayoum: History and Guide (AUC Press, 3rd ed. 2001).