The following version of this book was used to create the guide: Naga, Noor. If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English. Graywolf Press, 2022.

Noor Naga's novel If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English is written from the first person points of view of the main characters Noor and the boy from Shobrakheit. The novel is organized into three sections, the first two of which alternate between passages written from Noor's and the boy's perspectives. By way of contrast, Part Three is written in the form of a script or screenplay, and thus appears divorced from Parts One and Two. The author employs both the past and present tenses and embraces formal experimentation throughout. For the sake of clarity, the following summary employs the present tense and a more streamlined, linear mode of explanation.

When the boy from Shobrakheit is seven years old, he goes to live with his grandmother. His parents' constant fighting has made his home in the village untenable. Although separated from his mother and father, the boy is content with his grandmother. He is therefore devastated when his mother sells the house in which they are living without informing them. When the boy is 16, he and his grandmother move back in with his parents. Ashamed of her newfound and involuntary circumstances, the boy's grandmother soon commits suicide. Overcome by grief, the boy flees Shobrakheit for Cairo.

Ten years later, the boy is still residing in Cairo. Although he once busied himself as a photographer, the boy has neither worked nor attended to his hobby for many years. Then one day, the boy meets a girl from America named Noor at Café Riche. Although she is obviously wealthy, the boy feels connected to her.

Two months prior, Noor relocated to Cairo from New York City. Because her parents emigrated from Egypt decades prior, they cannot understand their daughter's decision. In spite of their confusion, Noor is hopeful that life in Cairo will resolve her internal unrest.

Noor takes a job teaching English at the British Council. She rents an apartment downtown. She becomes a regular at Café Riche, where she makes friends with the owner's son Sami and his good friend Reem. Then one day, she meets the boy from Shobrakheit while visiting with her friends at Riche.

Over the course of the following weeks and months, Noor and the boy begin spending all of their time together. Then one night, Noor decides to invite the boy up to her apartment. The boy is struck by the grandeur of the space, and feels like an interloper in this realm. In spite of his initial response to the apartment, the boy starts spending most nights here with Noor. Over time, Noor begins to realize that the boy is unwell and that his behaviors have become increasingly violent. Although she wants to break up with him, she is unsure how to get him out of her apartment without inciting his aggression. Not long later, the boy leaves of his own volition.

After the breakup, both Noor and the boy feel a momentary bout of relief. Noor soon starts dating a colleague from the Council named William. With William she feels more understood than she ever did with the boy. The boy also feels liberated after the breakup. However, not long later, he starts to long for Noor again. He begins watching and stalking her. He then stages an assault on the street from which he saves Noor. He and Noor end up reconnecting. Noor takes pity on the boy, realizing that his circumstances have worsened since she last saw him.

One night, Noor ignores the boy's calls. She wants a break from him. She spends the night with William. Although William is over at her apartment, when the boy knocks on her door, Noor lets him in. Seeing William, the boy charges him. William is so shocked by the boy's attack that he throws him over Noor's balcony to his death. Not long after the incident, Noor leaves Egypt for good.

Roughly a year after the boy's death, Noor writes a manuscript about what happened. She submits it to her nonfiction workshop. Her classmates spend the class period critiquing her submission, and particularly analyzing her formal decisions and interrogating the ethical implications of her account. At the end of the class, the instructor announces that Noor has received a publication deal for the piece.