The Southern Obsession

About this book

Accused falsely of a crime, a sheltered Cairo doctor is sent away from the capital to Qena. Abdel Hadi Hussein Mohamed chronicles this sudden relocation in The Southern Obsession, published by Egyptian Sudanese Emirati Publishing and Distribution. Expecting imminent violence and viewing the move as exile, the protagonist boards a southward train carrying persistent fears rooted in urban stereotypes. Upon arrival, however, encounters at the Sidi Abdel Rahim El Qenawi mosque reveal an entirely different environment defined by quiet faith and local generosity. Interacting with diverse residents exposes him to a social fabric driven by traditional honour, enduring loyalties, family vendettas, and concealed criminal networks. The narrative examines how direct experience dismantles inherited prejudices and forces a personal reckoning with fear.