What is the most striking feature of the Arab-American literature published outside of the Arab world?
There are a great number of Arab women writing outside of the Arab countries. This literature tends to be very secular and critical of patriarchal norms. The early phase of these writings tended to be nostalgic. But I would say that most Arab-American writers have transcended the nostalgic phase. There are a variety of genres present in their writings; their work is sophisticated and multi-layered. Arab-American writers write about discrimination, assimilation in the American society. And then there is, of course, the never-aging topic of Arab Israeli conflict. One fact about life in the Middle East is usually overlooked. Middle East does not have a homogenous population. There are many ethnic, linguistic, cultural and religious minorities in the Middle East and particularly in the Arab world. Has Al Jadid covered the literature and culture of these minorities? We have consistently covered cultural and literary news about minorities in the Middle East. Naturally, we have also discussed
