Ezzat el Kamhawi
An Egyptian writer and journalist whose novels and essays dissect the architecture of power and the haunted psyche of the modern Arab individual.
Born 1961 (age 65)·Egyptian novelist and journalist·Birthday: December 23·Baby Boomers
Biography
Ezzat el Kamhawi writes from the intersection of history, politics, and intimate life. An Egyptian journalist and novelist, his work is a deep excavation of how grand historical forces—colonialism, revolution, authoritarianism—warp the private spaces of home and memory. His prose is dense, philosophical, and often surreal, mapping the psychological landscapes of characters caught in Egypt's relentless tides of change. Awarded the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for his novel 'House of the Wolf,' Kamhawi demonstrated a mastery of weaving personal narrative with national allegory. Beyond fiction, his incisive journalism, which earned him the Samir Kassir Award for press freedom, tackles the physical and symbolic structures of power, from grandiose state buildings to the control of public space. He represents a vital intellectual thread in contemporary Arabic literature: the writer as critical witness, using both story and reportage to question the foundations of society.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Ezzat was born in 1961, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Ezzat Was Born
The biggest hits of 1961
#1 Movie
101 Dalmatians
Best Picture
West Side Story
#1 TV Show
Wagon Train
Ezzat's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1961Born
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1966Started school
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1974Became a teenager
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1977Could drive
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1979Could vote
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1982Turned 21
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1991Turned 30
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 40
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2011Turned 50
Osama bin Laden killed; Arab Spring sweeps the Middle East
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $138,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Rolling in the Deep" — AdeleBest Picture: The Artist
2021Turned 60
January 6 Capitol breach; COVID vaccines roll out globally
Gas: $3.01/galHome: $298,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Levitating" — Dua LipaBest Picture: CODA
2026Age 65 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Awarded the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature in 2012 for his novel 'House of the Wolf.'
- Won the Samir Kassir Award for Freedom of the Press in 2022 for his critical essay 'Suspicious architecture: The obsession with grand buildings and wide streets.'
- His body of work, including novels like 'The Black Cloud' and 'Ismailia Exit 12,' critically examines modern Egyptian history and identity.
- Has worked as a journalist for major Arabic publications, contributing political and cultural commentary.
Did You Know?
Before focusing on writing, he studied commerce at university.
He has served on the editorial boards of several important Arabic literary and cultural magazines.
His writing often incorporates elements of magical realism to explore historical trauma.
The Samir Kassir Award he won is named for a prominent Lebanese journalist and historian who was assassinated in 2005.
“History is not in the books; it's in the cracks of our own walls.”
