El-Enany (modern Arabic literature and Arab Islamic studies, U. of Exeter) published a comprehensive study of Mahfouz (1911-2006) in 1993, when the Egyptian writer was 82, frail, had already won the Nobel Prize, and had completed what turned out to be his final novel. Who would have guessed that his life would go another 13 years, and that his writing would take a completely new direction in form, technique, and style. He summaries his earlier work on Mahfouz's life and work through the 1980s (and of course recommends the original to readers), and fills out the story. Among the topics are his ancient and modern Egypt, The Cairo Trilogy, Nasser's Egypt and God, the episodic novels, and the novelist as short story writer and dramatist. Excerpts are boxed and in red type. Distributed in the US by International Publishers Marketing. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)