Arabs authors have been writing in English since the early twentieth century, when colonialism and mass waves of westward migration propelled its rise to the status of a regional lingua franca. Yet, it was not until the early 2000s that the designation ‘Anglophone Arab,’ began to gain traction in academic and literary circles. At the turn of the millennium, this long overlooked literary tradition garnered unprecedented attention — ushered in both by a growing diaspora and a desire to bridge increasingly contentious cultural gaps, which several theorists attribute to the 9/11 attacks. In her introduction to the 2009 study ‘Arab Voices in Diaspora: Critical Perspectives on Anglophone Arab Literature,’ editor Layla Al Maleh explains that works falling into this category share themes like “tension between the center and the periphery,” highlighting the consistent battle to provide a counternarrative to western imperialism in its own language. In the past two decades, these works have played a crucial role in bringing authentic knowledge of the Arab region to the rest of the world. Below are four novels written by Egyptian anglophone authors, whose writings defy orientalist perceptions of the country, and radiate…
