Within a Sufi framework held by Al-Attar’s granddaughter, the events of this novel take place in the critical period that Egypt is experiencing before the emergence of the Fatimid state and in its beginnings. It depicts the social situation of the Egyptian people at that time, and the political conflicts hidden under the cloak of religion.
In “The Vision of the Eye,” Mustafa Moussa weaves two parallel stories that go side by side, and are intertwined with a third heritage story narrated by “Ablaa” over many years. Fates intersect, destinies are drawn, and the facts of a conflict that will last forever are revealed.
Retired teacher Pius Fernandez receives from one of his students an old notebook found in the back room of a shop in East Africa. It turns out to be the diary of a British officer who lived seven decades ago in the small town of Kikono. The diary captivates the teacher, and he tries to recreate the world in it, and breathe life into the souls trapped there, discovering a dark, burning secret, the secret of a simple man named “Pippa” whose life, after his marriage to “Mariamo,” became painfully linked to the life of the English officer. As Fernandez follows the diary's trail, he himself eventually becomes one of the tales of the Book of Secrets.
In this novel, which won the Giller Prize in its first edition, in 1994, Vasanji writes an influential work rich in questions, about a very rich and complex world, vibrant with colorful images, against the backdrop of great historical changes.
