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Dreams of the Rehabilitation Period or Dreams of the Period of Recovery (Ahlam fatrat al-naqaha) are a series of writings, the last in Naguib Mahfouz's lifetime. The writings have been variously dubbed short stories, nanonovellas, dreams, and sketches. They are similar in scope to Mahfouz's 1982 collection I Saw as the Sleeper Sees in which a series of 17 short "dreams" is contained. They are meant to read like accounts of actual dreams. "The Dreams" were written in the last part of Mahfouz's lifetime and against a serious of unfortunate physical conditions, including diabetes and a recovery from a wounding by a would-be assassin. Additionally, Mahfouz fell down and broke his wrist and from that stage he began to dictate his writings. The product of his efforts are the extremely unique and haunting lyrics of 206 Dreams.

Many of the Dreams were originally published by Nisf al-Dunya between 2004 and 2006. Many have also appeared in the Cairo newspaper Al Ahram. The American University in Cairo has published The Dreams in two volumes; viz. "The Dreams" and "Dreams Departure."

Dream 206

I was setting the table and the invitees were in the next room. Their voices came to me - those of my mother, and of my brothers and sisters - while, in the interval, sleep stole me away. For a moment terror gripped me, before my memory came back to me. I recalled that they had all gone to dwell close to their Lord - and that I had walked in their funerals, one after the other.
- Naguib Mahfouz, translated by Raymond Stock, 2007. Published by the American University in Cairo.

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