EgyptShopping

Book shopping in Egypt

  1. A

    Abd El Zaher

    Cairo's last working bookbinder also makes beautiful leather- and oil-paper-bound blank books, photo albums and diaries. Free gold monogramming is included in the prices, which are heartbreakingly low, considering the work that goes into them. Getting your own book bound starts around £E15 and takes a few days.

    reviewed

  2. B

    Oum El Dounia

    At a great central location, Oum El Dounia sells an attractive range of locally made glassware, Bedouin jewellery, cotton clothes, bags, embroidered shawls and light fittings. It also stocks a small range of maps, postcards and English- and French-language books about Cairo and Egypt, as well as CDs.

    reviewed

  3. C

    Souq al-Fustat

    A new market built for tourists, this is nonetheless a nice collection of shops, with vendors of antique carpets, modern ceramics, richly embroidered galabiyyas and wooden toys along with a branch of Sami Amin. Sales pressure is pleasantly low.

    reviewed

  4. D

    Ganoub Traditional Handicrafts

    A tasteful little shop with the best selection of crafts in Bawiti, brought from all over Egypt, including camel-wool blankets and traditional oasis robes. It also has a small selection of books on the desert as well as postcards.

    reviewed

  5. E

    Lehnert & Landrock

    A good place for maps, books about Cairo and Egypt (some secondhand), vintage postcards and reprints of old photographs. There are branches opposite the Egyptian Museum and outside the Sphinx-side entrance to the Pyramids.

    reviewed

  6. F

    American University in Cairo (AUC) Bookshop

    The best English-language bookshop in Egypt, with stacks of material on the politics, sociology and history of Cairo, Egypt and the Middle East. Plenty of guidebooks and some fiction.

    reviewed

  7. G

    L’Orientale

    This is a great outlet for rare books on Egypt and the Middle East, as well as lithographs, maps and engravings. Another branch (L’Orientaliste) is on Sharia Qasr el-Nil.

    reviewed

  8. H

    Diwan

    Fabulous: English, French and German titles, from novels to travel guides to coffee-table books. It also has a kids’ section, large music wing and a small cafe.

    reviewed

  9. I

    AA Gaddis Bookshop

    Next door to the Old Winter Palace Hotel; extensive selection of books on Egypt, postcards and souvenirs.

    reviewed

  10. J

    Ezbekiyya Book Market

    The 50 or so stalls here have the occasional treasures, but browsing the messy piles can be a chore.

    reviewed

  11. Advertisement

  12. K

    Zamalek Bookshop

    Small but packed with magazines, English-language crime fiction and airport-style novels.

    reviewed

  13. L

    Shorouk

    Find Arabic and English bestsellers, plus a lot of magazines at this two-storey shop.

    reviewed

  14. M

    Aboudi Bookshop

    Has an excellent selection of guidebooks, maps, postcards and fiction.

    reviewed

  15. N

    Dar al-Mustaqbal Bookshop

    A smattering of fiction and nonfiction books in English.

    reviewed

  16. O

    Al-Ahram Bookshop

    A smattering of fiction and nonfiction books in English.

    reviewed

  17. P

    Anglo-Egyptian Bookshop

    Good selection of books on Egypt and the Middle East.

    reviewed

  18. ACML Bookshop

    Has one of the better selections in Alexandria.

    reviewed