Dear ETC.

Stitched together from a wealth of letters Alex Gibeily wrote to his children at the height of Lebanon’s civil war in the 1970s and 1980s, this beautifully crafted story provides an insight into the pathos and fears of separation caused by the unfolding drama of war, with its many parallels to current bloody conflicts across the world. These typewritten letters are reproduced faithfully and are interwoven with original hand-drawn illustrations by his youngest grandchild, Kyra Gibeily, born more than a decade after Alex’s death. Shedding light on the perspective of a father desperate for his children to lead a better life far from the horrors of conflict, this story is as timeless as it is timely.

Available to buy

Kings & Pawns: Board Games from India to Spain

Tracing the rich tapestry that is the story of chess, from Mysore to Madrid, Kings & Pawns provides an authoritative account of the origins, development and adaptations of the game—and its relation to Islamic art. Filled with stunning photography of objects from the collection of the Museum of Islamic Art in Qatar, the catalogue also looks at other popular board games, including backgammon, pachisi (ludo) and gyan chaupar (snakes and ladders).

Featuring a variety of game pieces, boards, chess manuals and illustrated manuscripts, this publication brings to life the vibrant artistic production associated with these popular pastimes.

Utopia

A grim futuristic account of Egyptian society in the year 2023, Utopia takes readers on a chilling journey beyond the gated communities of the North Coast where the wealthy are insulated from the bleakness of life outside the walls. When a young man and a girl break out from this bubble of affluence in order to see for themselves the lives of their impoverished fellow Egyptians they are confronted by a world that they had not imagined possible. Breathtaking and suspenseful, Utopia's twists and turns will keep readers guessing until the very last page, and may leave some wondering whether this is a vision of the future that is not too far away.

The Corsair

Set in the early nineteenth century, The Corsair unfolds as piracy in the Gulf disrupts global trade and the Wahhabi movement sweeps across Arabia. Britain, determined to protect East India Company routes, sends a man-of-war to suppress the corsairs and rally Egypt, Oman, and Persia against the rising Wahhabis—centering its strategy on delivering a priceless Indian sword to the Egyptian Pasha. But when the notorious pirate Erhama bin Jaber seizes the sword, Britain’s plan unravels amid shifting alliances and betrayals across the region’s ports, culminating in a grueling Arabian trek where an unexpected friendship forms between Erhama’s defiant son and a British army major.

Throwing Sparks

When an opulent palace is built on the Jeddah waterfront near his poverty-stricken neighbourhood, ambitious Tariq sees a way out of his life of petty crime. He stares longingly at the huge gates, dreaming of the luxuries beyond. But dream quickly turns into nightmare. The Palace is ruled by an enigmatic Master whose influence in the city is as wide as it is wicked. When Tariq succeeds in being appointed to serve the Master it becomes clear that he has been chosen for a single, terrible task.

Thirty years later, Tariq feels trapped. In between punishing the Master's enemies through unspeakable acts, falling for Maram, the Master's beautiful mistress, and resisting his brother's pleas to return home, he realises that he has become no more than a slave - and that there is only one way out.

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