The summer special issue, guest co-edited by Laure Assaf and Deepak Unnikrishnan, explores the United Arab Emirates’ literary and creative scene — away from monolithic representations of the region. Its contributors are makers – of books, arts, texts, and community – with ties to the United Arab Emirates and/or the Gulf. They are brought into conversation across generations and disciplines, reflecting on what this place is for them, and what it does to them. They talk about risk, memory-making, taxis, and televised dreams — pushing the lines, or treading them carefully.

Editorial Skin in the Game

Lead Feature New, Old, and Imagined Homes

Articles Unearthing Heritage: Skill and Expertise in the Making of the UAE's Archaeological Pasts; Callejerx in the Gulf: Dériving Language Landscapes in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah

Interviews Khaled Esguerra, Juan Gonzales, & Carlos Páez González; Sreerag Jyothish & Murtaza Vali; Ahmad Makia, Zoe Patterson & Vamika Sinha

Art Inlays, Overlays by Manuel Benchetrit

Fiction Ziad Abdullah, trans. maia tabet, Camille Ammoun, trans. Sarah Lloyd, Bhoomika Ghaghada, Husam Hilali, trans. Anonymous

Poetry Amna Abdalla Alharmoodi, Shayma Al Harthi, Nada Almosa, Aathma Nirmala Dious, Mona Kareem, trans. Sara Elkamel, Jill Magi, Augustine Paredes

Life Writing Mohamed Shafeeq Karinkurayil, Zoe Patterson

Review Essay Towards an Anglophone Poetry Canon in the Emirates

Reviews Everyday Life in the Spectacular City, Rana AlMutawa; The Gulf Migrant Archives in Kerala, Mohammed Shafeeq Karinkurayil; The Guardian of Surfaces, Bothayna Al-Essa, trans. Ranya Abdelrahman and Sawad Hussain

... and much more.