The three bottles sit in a cushioned box behind the instant noodles and cold drinks on offer at Shokry’s Cairo convenience stall, their ornate script and stamp of origin – “1954, Italia” – indicating something special. These are “first-class” wishes, the finest money can buy, capable of curing disease, creating great riches or bringing dinosaurs to life. So why has no one bought them yet?
The buzz around Deena Mohamed has been growing since 2013 when, aged 18, she started posting a bold and funny webcomic called Qahera about a “hijabi superhero” who clashes with everyone from hypocritical elders to western feminists. Her ambitious debut graphic novel will set her stock still higher. Published in Egypt in three volumes between 2017 and 2021, it has been translated by Mohamed herself and collected in one chunky English-language hardback. Read from right to left like the Arabic original, this compelling urban fantasy sees three regulars to Shokry’s stall grapple with the implications of their wish-making.
