The Republic of Memory

Mahmud El Sayed

Synopsis
The Safina is a city ship, two hundred years into its voyage from the ruins of Earth towards a new habitable world. Its crew maintain the ship, generation after generation, while protecting their “ancestors”—the final remnants of Earth's doomed Network Empire—by keeping them alive in cryostasis.
But a lot can change in two hundred years, and people are starting to ask questions. Why should the crew continue to toil for people none of them remember? What exactly gives Administration its authority over everyone else?
And when the blackouts start, they set in motion a chain of events that will change life on the Safina forever. A reckoning is coming. The system is only secure so long as those in power maintain the obedience of those beneath them.
And the crew has had enough.

A science fiction odyssey of breathtaking scope, The Republic of Memory is a gripping examination of what divides us, and what brings us together. This is a modern and ambitious work of Arabfuturism, and is perfect for fans of The Expanse, A Memory Called Empire or Children of Time.

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Review
The Republic of Memory is an Arab-futurism Sci-fi inspired by Arab Spring and is Mahmud El Sayed's debut novel and what a novel. This book took me some time to read as I had to digest the information and it's definitely a heavy read (in the best of ways), making you think about all the impact of colonisation and the way language plays a role in it all.
As an Arab and someone who lived through Arab Spring in another country, I could recognise the influence of Egypt's Arab Spring on Mahmud's work and how we see the way it impacted the crew in the Safina. The Author takes the time to build the world, giving this book a very epic Sci-Fi vibe. We are introduced to different areas in the Safina, its people and languages plus the way they work and function.
We are also introduced to the different factions that are demanding changes in the Safina. We see people with different beliefs, morals and values, reading their POV and understanding how each of them has been shaped by the Safina and the way the world has been built.
Oh and a whole new language that is a mixture of different languages? Reading and trying to understand/decode Nupol was so fun throughout the book. I ended up with a bit of a glossary that was ever-changing as words seem to carry multiple meanings. Eventually, my glossary was ditched as I came to understand most of what was said between the crew.
I would love to attend a talk with Mahmud one day and hear what inspired every part of this book, understand how he pieced it all together. This is something you have to experience and get ready to read. It's both slow and fast paced in the way that books with a lot of world building and political aspects to them are and what an adventure it takes you on.
I can't wait for book two and I am planning on rereading book one as The Republic of Memory needs a second read to be fully appreciated. OH and I can't not mention all the amazing Egyptian food we got in the book! I really want some Macarona Bechamel now.
I was provided a free advance reader copy and I’m sharing my honest thoughts.