Chronicle of a Last Summer

This audiobook traces how a nation and a girl grow up together, losing their innocence in the 1980s. These intertwined destinies are delivered in a melancholy tone by the author herself. Beginning with the assassination of Egypt's prime minister, Sadat, the story takes the listener on a journey of history, both national and personal. An unnamed narrator struggles into adulthood with a missing father, a mentally challenged aunt, and a nation ruled by a dictator. Those who are familiar with Egyptian history will recognize many of the story's events as it dramatizes three different moments in the protagonist's life. The literary themes of this novel outshine the author's unvaried delivery. M.R. � AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine