"A comprehensive history of a city that has served as a 'representative illustration of some of history's most consequential empires.' An Alexandrian by birth, Issa relates his native city's past principally through attention to its most famous figures and rulers. A well-researched, readable history of one of the world's oldest and most consequential cities."--Kirkus Reviews

"A lively chronicle of one of the world's most cosmopolitan cities from its beginnings almost two and a half millennia ago to the present. Issa vividly recounts invasions by the Crusaders, Ottomans, French, and British, and shows how in the modern era Alexandria continued in its role as a cultural hub and social and religious melting pot. This impressively researched account reveals a captivating city through the ages."--Publishers Weekly

"Crackling with good storytelling across more than two millennia, this is a love letter that makes us long for Alexandria."--Paul Edmondson, author of Shakespeare: Ideas in Profile

"Issa takes the reader on a mesmerising journey. He does a fantastic job of explaining the history, taking the time to share the stories, both mythical and factual, that have made Alexandria the city it is today. His history is a tribute to Alexandria, a reservoir of knowledge on the city, and sets a marker for those wishing to tell the stories of the world's great cities. "--Al Jazeera

"Issa combines love for the city with nos­talgia for its vanished past - for a place where for over two thousand years different communities coexisted. He describes them, their achievements and their woes with admirable balance. Issa has brilliantly illuminated the history of a great city."--Literary Review

"This lively cultural history of the place that is often described as the world's first modern city is full of fascinating facts and amazing stories. Issa chronicles the splendours and events of its past quite wonderfully, offering us a work that is both scholarly and entertaining."--The Gleaner

"Issa is a genius guardian of Alexandra."--Women's Weekly

"Brimming with the sights and sounds of the streets of Alexandria, this is at once a moving family memoir, an exciting travel book, and a grand sweep history of one of the most thrilling cities on earth. A real journey, and yet a voyage of the mind to the Capital of Memory."--Michael Wood, author of In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great

"A masterpiece worthy of the Great Library itself!"

--Tristan Hughes, author of Alexander's Successors at War