Aunt Safiyya and the Monastery by Bahaa’ Taher 120 page novel fine introduction to Egyptian literature (grades 9-12). Full text available on line.

War in the Land of Egypt by Yusuf Al-Qaid tells the story of a young man from the village sold into the Egyptian army to take the place of the son of a wealthy man. Powerful introduction to class relations in Egypt. (grades 10-12)

The Day the Leader Was Killed by Nobel Prize winner Naguib Mahfouz addresses young people in middle class Cairo (grades 11-12).

The Yacobian Building by Imarat Yaqubian the best selling Arabic novel for 2002 and 2003 was made into a film and TV series. Modern life in Cairo, class relations, corruption, fundamentalism, terrorism, sexualtiy and homosexuality are themes (grades 11-12).

The Bleeding of the Stone by Yusuf Al-Quaid a novel that describes the encounter between a Bedouin young man in the desert in the south of Libya and two foreign hunters (grades 11-12)

Memed My Hawk by Yasar Kemal is one of the great novels of modern Turkey and addresses the struggle of a young man against a powerful rural landlord (11-12). 1984 film with Peter Ustinov.

The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak addresses Islam and women, the hybridization of contemporary Turkish culture, and the Armenian genocide

West of the Jordon by Laila Halaby portrays the coming to age of four young Arabic women in Jordan, Palestine, and the United States (grades 11-12).

ArabFilm.com is a great resource for film.

Additional possibilities for Arabic literature, Turkish literature, and Iranian literature.