The Sinners [a novel]

A woman abandons her newborn baby in a ditch. Soon discovered, the corpse arouses in the local peasants an intense desire to bring the killer to justice—and gives them the excuse to pry into the lives of the entire community. The primary suspects are a group of migrant workers, and the question of their guilt or innocence soon reveals other kinds of truths. The Sinners is an evocative account of life in pre-revolutionary Egypt, taking a hard look at the social mores and taboos of peasant society. First published in Arabic in 1959.