(Granta, 8.99)

Said grew up in the late forties and early fifties, and witnessed the collapse of the old Arab order, in the midst of both British and American imperialism. Born in Jerusalem, he was brought up in Cairo and spent summers in a Lebanese mountain village until he was banished to America in 1951. His memories combine a deeply personal history with an extraordinary political account. He explores his emotional response to his life; his family, a demanding 'Victorian' father and his adored mother.