Two centuries ago, native New Yorker Washington Irving exploded onto the literary scene of Europe with the publication of his breakout collection of stories, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. Published in England and America in 1819–1820, and universally praised for its inventive characters and soul-searching qualities, including the immortal tales “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” the volume enjoyed remarkable transatlantic success, allowing Irving to be...

Washington Irving and Islam contributes to understanding the relationship between the United States and the Islamic world, valuable not only for studies of Washington Irving, American Literature, or Islam, but also for thinking through the role Islam and the “Orient” have played in American literature and history, a critical field receiving ever-increasing attention. The global context of Irving’s work ties these essays together as does an understanding that his writings challenge...