A review by catsteaandabook
If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English by Noor Naga

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

TW: rape, domestic violence
If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English follows a wealthy Egyptian-American woman and a poor Egyptian man. She moves to Egypt to be an English teacher and struggles with being seen as merely “American” and not “Egyptian” as she struggles with Arabic and does not conform to much of Egyptian culture. He is a native and struggles with money and a cocaine addiction. He was sexist. She was classist. (Can I make it any more obvious?) 

If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English is a masterclass in nuance. At the beginning of the book I thought it was going to be a romance. I quickly realized it is not. Noor/The American is very privileged and this is apparent through her actions. Simultaneously, she is the boy from Shobrakheit’s victim. The boy from Shobrakheit is at times sympathetic. I can empathize with his addiction and money struggles, but at the same time, he is  sexist and abusive. His thoughts are very reminiscent of incel rhetoric. He throws objects at Noor and seemingly rapes her. (The way it is written makes it not entirely clear.) Noor recognizes this but still cares for him, and much of the book is her reckoning with this. Also, while their sins are obviously not equatable, the boy from Shobrakheit also reckons with caring for Noor while she does not understand his struggles. 

The ending was brilliant and brought my review from 4.5 to 5. Incredibly meta, the third and final part of the book takes place in a writing class where Noor is presenting If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English to the class as her memoir and her classmates are discussing what they liked and disliked and how it could be better. The class spoke some of my own thoughts and helped me parce through them while also bringing up points I hadn’t thought of. It was a creative and very enjoyable ending. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings