This book was first published in 1964 in Paris. Its author, Albert Cossery, was born in Cairo in 1913 of well-off Greek Orthodox parents and was educated in French schools. He befriended Henry Miller while he served as a ship steward and was in the US. His first book, "Men God Forgot," published in Cairo in 1941 in French, came to the attention of Albert Camus. Cossery's writing in this book is unique, takes a dark view and turns it into sarcastic hilarity, and reminds me very much of Russian literature, specifically Dostoevsky. Yet, in spite of this novel's cynical view of politicians, authority figures, materialism, and the pathetic strivings of the working classes to rise up the economic ladder, there is a spiritual side to it and a genuine feeling of empathy for the sadly disenfranchised. One of the main characters, Heykal, is an impoverished "revolutionary" who is presented as being above the fray, an aristocrat, an unemotional anarchist who uses irony and hyperbolic exaggeration to unseat the oppressive "governor" and his corrupt cronies. He is above the run of the mill revolutionaries, doesn't throw bombs, but rather throws jokes and pranks at power to unseat it. He's an interesting character, one of many that populate this work. If you're looking for a unique read and a new author to explore, stop here. Recommended.