I Know Many Songs, But I Cannot Sing - by Brian Kiteley (Paperback)

About the Book

In Cairo, an American named Ib encounters an Armenian named Gamal-Leon, who begins to follow Ib as a joke one evening toward the end of Ramadan, the period when Muslims fast by day and feast by night. As the two strangers roam the night, the readers swim with Ib against a tide of mistranslation and rumor thst submerges them in an almost hallucinatory experience of foreignness.

Book Synopsis

From the author of Still Life with Insects comes a contemporary tale of an unlikely connection between an American historian and an Armenian theater critic on the streets of Cairo.

While in Cairo, Ib, an American historian and translator crosses paths with an Armenian-born theater critic and drama teacher, Gamal-Leon. Gamal-Leon begins to trace Ib's every step, playing practical jokes on him in an effort to challenge Ib's easygoing view on life.

Examining the balance between contemporary Egypt and western culture, Kiteley shares a tale of two strangers roaming through the night as he takes readers on an entrancing trip of forgiveness as Ib learns to swim against the tide.

From the Back Cover

Brian Kiteley has chosen as backdrop for this mesmerizing tale the ancient city of Cairo. An American known only as Ib encounters an Armenian named Gamal-Leon, who begins to follow Ib as a practical joke one evening toward the end of Ramadan, the period when Muslims fast during the day and feast most of the night. As the two strangers roam the streets in the deepening night, we swim with Ib against a tide of mistranslations, misunderstanding, and rumor, and are submerged with him in a heady, almost hallucinatory experience of foreignness.

About the Author

Brian Kiteley is the author of three novels and two collections of fictions exercises. He teaches at the University of Denver in the Creative Writing Ph.D. program.