Whisper of Madness

Whisper of Madness (Hams Al-Junun) is Naguib Maḥfouz’s first short story collection. It consists of short stories taking place in Cairo, following the scandals of Cairo's elite and its underbelly, with nationalism persisting throughout the collection. The stories were first published separately in newspapers and magazines in the 1930s. The short story The Price of Weakness (Thaman Al-Duʿf) is considered to be Maḥfouz’s first short story, and it was published in August 1934. Maḥfouz clears some misconceptions about the collection by saying “readers might not be aware that Whisper of Madness (Hams Al-Junun) was not published in 1938, as is stated in my bibliography, but actually after the publication of my novel ‘Midaq Alley’’.