Diwan launches Diwan Canada, shipping its books to readers in the US and Canada
Cairo's Diwan bookstore has launched Diwan Canada, an online service that lets readers in Canada and the United States order its Arabic, English and French titles, with a physical branch there to follow.
Diwan, the bookshop that opened in Zamalek in 2002, is taking its shelves across the Atlantic. The Cairo bookseller has launched Diwan Canada, an online service for readers in Canada and the United States, CairoScene reported on 9 November, giving 11 November as the launch date.
Through it, readers in North America can order titles from Diwan's own collection in Arabic, English and French, the same mix of Egyptian, regional and international writing that its shops in Cairo carry. Diwan already ships within Egypt and to several other countries; Canada and the US are the newest additions, and the service is the first step of a wider move into North America. According to CairoScene, a physical Diwan branch there is set to open soon. Its city and date have not been announced.
Over more than two decades Diwan has grown from a single shop on 26th of July Street in Zamalek into one of Cairo's best known bookshop names, and more than a shop: it hosts authors and runs cultural events, and its Zamalek branch is still a meeting point for readers in the city.
For readers in Egypt nothing changes: the shops and the local delivery carry on as before. If you have family or friends in Canada or the US who have been asking you to bring Arabic books in your suitcase, they can now order directly. Shipping costs and delivery times for North America have not been published, so check them at checkout before ordering.