to determine the meaning of life in relation to who he is. Themes present in Journey of Ibn Fattouma revolve around how to correctly organize a society and his personal existential struggles. The main character in the allegory, Qindil, travels to many lands to try to discover a perfect land and when he cannot find one, readers are left to realize whether a perfect society really exists and what a society should be based on. Qindil attempts to determine the meaning of life in relation to who he is. The story relies heavily on self-interpretation creating a path to discovery for Qindil and the reader leaving everyone to question what the real journey was. Translations The Journey of Ibn Fattouma was first published in Arabic in 1983, as رحلة إبن فطوم. and has since been translated in German, Italian, and English. The English translation was done by Denys Johnson-Davies. Commercial reception On a scale of A-F, complete-review.com gave Journey of Ibn Fattouma an A−, stating that it is “a clever...parable of different forms of governments and societies.” Critical reception “The style of the Arabic original is descriptive, sensuous, and sometimes moving. The translation, coming from the pen of an experienced translator, is meticulously faithful to the original while maintaining complete idiomatic English that flows smoothly.”- Issa Peters, World Literature Today As said by The Complete Review, “The Journey of Ibn Fattouma is a clever if occasionally too simplistic parable of different forms of government and society, seen especially -- and very effectively -- in relation to Islam (both theoretical and the less-than-perfect real-life examples of Islamic states). Qindil's travels and observations are engaging and very nicely related… though much is a bit too quickly brushed over. War breaks out several times too often; presented as it is, it comes to look like an inevitability in practically each of these situations, which doesn't seem to be what Mahfouz means. Qindil's love-life is also a bit odd, his passion understandable but also too quickly indulged in (and then disposed of, as he leaves family after family behind). But the strengths of the text easily outweigh all the weaknesses. An enjoyable and thoughtful novel, certainly recommended,” and gave it a rating of A−. Erik Cohen describes: “The original, archaic pilgrimage” as “the quest for the mythical land of pristine existence, of no evil or suffering, the primaeval centre from which man originally emerged,