'Hot Imagination' is a novel that received the Ihsan Abdel Quddous Salon Award shortly after its release. It is authored by the Egyptian oil engineer Mohamed Al-Ashri. The intriguing title suggests a heat not present in the narrative, which instead offers a blend of reality, fiction, and fantasy, carrying a philosophy that inspires calm reflection and thought. Published by the Arab Scientific Publishers in Beirut, in collaboration with Al-Ikhtilaf Publications in Algeria and Madbouli Library in Cairo, the novel spans one hundred and eleven pages divided into four main chapters: Hope, Passion, Window, and Embrace. It reshapes new legends based on Eastern heritage, particularly Egyptian.

The story starts with Saher, a man who encounters a mythical creature (the Salawa) that terrorizes a merchant and his family at their home. He bravely kills it, leaving the family and the household fascinated by him. The merchant decides to have a sculptor create a statue in his honor. Saher returns home with the promise of occasional visits, but never returns. Nevertheless, his legend remains alive among those won over by his bravery, restoring their freedom. The narrative continues with Saher and his son, who falls in love with the merchant’s daughter, Jumana.

Al-Ashri explores various images of the hero in our collective imagination, the righteous hero who fights evil valiantly regardless of the cost. We strip the hero of his humanity, bestowing an aura of light on him, hiding his flaws. Thus, we are shocked when he descends from his pedestal and experiences what we all do – admiration or underestimation, honor or its opposite, acceptance or rejection. Throughout the novel, there are clear influences of figures significant in Egyptian cultural memory, from Abu Zayd al-Hilali to Hassan Al-Hilou, the lion tamer in the circus. However, when we see the hero as one of us, duality begins. The hero remains the hero, unchanged by his singular action that elevated him in our eyes. We chose to see him differently once he lived among us, turning his heroism into a burden.

In the story, the merchant waits for Saher the hero to return for years, fueling his daughter's love for the man. When the hero’s son returns and Jumana falls for him, the merchant forgets the father's heroism, demanding that the son be a wealthy suitor for his beloved daughter. It is noteworthy that this book won the Ihsan Abdel Quddous Award for Novels in Egypt, 2008.

Publishing house: Arab Scientific Publishers/Lebanon

Number of Pages: 111

Year of publication: 2007