Mountolive

First published in 1958, this novel, the third of the Alexandria Quartet, is told largely through the career of the diplomat David Mountolive. As a young attache in Egypt he becomes the lover of Leila Hosnani, a Coptic wife, and the friend of her sons Nessim and Narouz. Years later he returns as British ambassador and must handle the same household as a political problem: Coptic fears, Zionist gun-running, and the police work of the older Pursewarden and the younger Darley. Alexandria's cafes, desert estates, and consular offices are the setting. The book is a political and diplomatic recasting of events already seen from other angles in the quartet.

Three-quarter bound in orange cloth with gilt spine title and photo illustrated front board. Brown slipcase.