Secret societies have been around as long as humans deemed it necessary to keep secrets.  This mystery around secrets is why people are obsessed with fraternities and sororities. Never mind humans need to belong, but also the infinite need for knowledge. When one believes that knowledge may be kept form the rest of the world, people somehow look at secret organizations.

In many movies and tv shows, secret organizations have been at the center of every conspiracy imaginable. Which why names like the Illuminati, the Society of Skull and Bones and the Masons, are usually brought up, but very few h, if any, have ever bene connected to any life changing event. This has not stopped creators around the world from imagining what dire situations can be. Tis what is at the center of Ahmed Naji’s entertaining tome Using Life.

We meet a young filmmaker by the name of Bassam, who has been hired by a secret society to film the urban planning and architecture of Cairo. As he goes about his work, he starts uncovering, things about his mysterious employer. Before he knows it, his life is in unknown turmoil, as he faces a question that will change his city and his life. By book’s end, Bassam makes some hard choices and his city not his anymore.

Overall, a poignant action-packed thriller that will have he reader jumping all over the city as if you were running Bassam himself. The story by Naji is enthralling, smart, and fast paced. The art by Al-Zorkany is vivid. Altogether, a book that will have you coming back for more work from this new voice. 

Story: Ahmed Naji Art: Ayman Al Zarkany Translation: Benjamin Koerber
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy