The Photographer's Wife Author:Robert Sole Translated by John Brownjohn A lush evocation of the cosmopolitan culture of late-nineteenth-century Mediterranean society. It is 1891, and Emile Touta has gathered his family on the beach at Alexandria, Egypt, for their annual photograph. There he falls in love with Dora-a beautiful, self-assured woman who spends her days painting the sea-and ... more »marriage soon follows. Assisting Emile in his studio, Dora is drawn to photography, and before long her talent eclipses that of her husband. The studio's reputation soars. But Cairo society, sophisticated though small, is shocked by Dora's behavior, and her marriage begins to show signs of strain. While Dora wrestles with internal conflict, the world around her also starts to fracture, as nationalism takes root in British-occupied Egypt. Dora leaves for Khartoum to cover the British conquest of Sudan. Alone there, she begins to reconcile her identities as both a talented artist and a woman of her society. With the city of Alexandria and the dustier, more oriental Cairo as settings, The Photographer's Wife is a powerful portrait of the timeless struggle between a woman's will and what the outside world deems her destiny.« less