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unbecoming-kiley · 2 years

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Faig Ahmed, Flood of Yellow Light, handmade wool carpet.

#Faig Ahmed #Art #Flood of Yellow Light #carpet #prayer rug #artist #modern art #abstract art #art instillation #contemporary art #muslim #artist on tumblr #muslim artist

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elizmanderson · 1 year

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Henlo :3

I'm currently reading the Remarkable Retirement of Edna Fisher, and it was bugging me that I didn't know why Amir was flinching when Edna touched him, so (based on Akida's hijab and Amir's prayer rug) I looked into customs of Islam and learned some stuff and I just want to say thanks for having so many different kinds of lives in this book (: I always appreciate learning real world stuff in fun ways.

thank you so much for reading! I had a lot of help with Amir's character from Muslim friends who kindly answered my questions and/or read early drafts and gave me feedback. I'd like to take this opportunity to recommend a couple Muslim authors and their books*!

Adiba Jaigirdar is an auto-buy author for me! three of her books are queer YA romance - The Henna Wars, Hani & Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating, and The Dos and Donuts of Love (the last one is coming out in June) - but she also has A Million to One, which is a heist story set on the Titanic. that one just released in December, so I haven't read it yet, but I'm SO EXCITED for it. check out Adiba's books on her website.

Priyanka Taslim is a fellow 2023 debut whose book I looked forward to for ages, and it did not disappoint! The Love Match is pitched as a Bangladeshi-American YA romance that will appeal to fans of Jane Austen (and also it will appeal to tea-lovers everywhere). it has fake dating, complicated family dynamics, and a love triangle that really kept me guessing. Priyanka also has an adult novel, From Mumbai With Love, anticipated to release early in 2024, so add it on GoodReads now. check out Priyanka's website here.

Kataru Yahya is another fellow debut whose book is alas not out yet, but I can't wait to read it! Home Is a Silhouette is a loose, contemporary retelling of Beauty & the Beast that is set in Ghana. If you haven't seen the cover yet, be sure to take a look, because it's ridiculously gorgeous. add the book on GoodReads now, and check out Kataru's Linktree here. (she is also a poet, and some of her poetry is linked on Linktree if you're interested!)

Aamna Qureshi is the definition of "it's about the range": if you're looking for an author who can do contemporary, fantasy, long-form, short-form - look no further. The Lady or the Lion and The Man or the Monster (a YA fantasy duology retelling of the story "The Lady or the Tiger") are out now. keep an eye out for When a Brown Girl Flees (2023), If I Loved You Less (2024), and My Big, Fat, Desi Wedding (edited by Prerna Pickett, 2024) if you prefer contemporary! see more details on Aamna's website.

Khadijah VanBrakle is another fellow debut, and her book comes out next month! Fatima Tate Takes the Cake is recommended for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo and Ibi Zoboi (um, YES) and is yet another debut with an absolutely gorgeous cover that I'm obsessed with. if you like coming-of-age stories that are gritty yet hopeful, be sure to give this one a look. see more details on Khadijah's website!

*I write adult contemporary fantasy, and you'll notice this list is like. mostly YA contemporary/YA romance with a sprinkling of YA fantasy. that is because, as much as I love adult fantasy and writing in the adult fantasy space, most of what I read in general tends to be YA, and most of what I've read since the pandemic started leans romance (because low stakes and a guaranteed HEA are exactly what I have needed since the pandemic started).

#answered #book recs #queer book recs #muslim authors #books and reading #fantasy books #ya books #contemporary books

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ya-world-challenge · 27 days

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Book Review - Home is Not a Country by Safia Elhillo (🇸🇩 Sudan)

[image 1: book cover, photographic - a young Black woman's face, serene, is surround by various types of orange flowers - lilies, daisy-like wildflowers, butterflies; image 2: a map showing Sudan in northeast Africa, south of Egypt; image 3: Sudanese women gather for coffee - four women in saffron and red dresses with head coverings sit around a low octagonal table set with traditional coffee - source: wikimedia]

Home is Not a Country

Author: Safia Elhillo

YA World Challenge read for 🇸🇩 Sudan

Review

Before leaving for the ER a few weeks ago, I threw a bunch of books and audiobooks on library hold so I could read on my phone. I didn't get to this one during my stay, but I listened to it over the next couple of weeks.

First, I have decided that poetry/novels in verse must be listened to on audio especially if the author narrates (which they often do). Elhillo narrates beautifully and gives the book oceans of depth.

Nima is a teen caught between countries. Living in America, she doesn't feel accepted. She is also disconnected from the trauma that gives the previous generation a complicated relationship with their home country. She becomes a "nostalgia monster", as her friend Haitham calls her, listening to the old Arabic songs on cassettes from her mother's generation, searching for culture to belong to. Resentful of an imagined perfect life, she personifies Yasmeen - the name she was almost given - into someone to be jealous of... until something happens.

This novel starts out as a poetic narrative of a second-generation immigrant, slowly evolving in a magical realism adventure with a twist! With themes of belonging and being careful what you wish for, Nima is a relatable and imperfect heroine. This was an enjoyable and thoughtful read.

★ ★ ★ ★ 4 stars

Other reps: #muslim #immigrant

Genres: #poetry #contemporary #magical realism

#book review #booklr #reading challenge #books and reading #sudan #muslim #immigrant #poetry #novel in verse #contemporary #magical realism #north africa #east africa

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battyaboutbooksreviews · 5 months

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Find my review here.

#book blog #book lovers #books #reading #book tropes #book: courting samira #author: amal awad #love triangle #romcom #romantic comedy #muslim writers #save palestine #free palestine #contemporary romance #batty about books #battyaboutbooks

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belle-keys · 2 years

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"Anger doesn't really cover what I feel, though... What's the word for when someone drinks so much, they are ruining your best friend's life? Or the word for a man so vengeful about his own past that he wants to destroy your future? What's the word for a woman who was sick for months, but refused to go to the doctor until it was too late? The word for a girl at school whose personal mission is to mess with your head? Anger's not the right word. Rage. That's what this feeling is, eating me up."

- All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir (2022)

#all my rage #sabaa tahir #ya lit #ya contemporary #ya romance #books and literature #book quotes #pakistan #ya books #quotes #book blog #bookblr #woc writers #feminism #female rage #muslim writers

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desdasiwrites · 1 year

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– Adiba Jaigirdar, Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating

#book quote of the day #adiba jaigirdar #hani and ishu's guide to fake dating #bisexual #ya #contemporary literature #bipoc representation #Asian representation #muslim protagonist #cute cover #sapphic books #book quotes

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mibeau · 8 months

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[Book Review] 🧕Vol. 2: Muslim Woman’s Participation in Social Life🧕

🧮 Score: 3.8/5.0 . "To sum up, social meeting between men and women entails that they look at each other. This is perfectly alright, as long as they behave decently, not gazing hard at each other or coupling their gaze with desire." - page 50.

■ This book is a part of the abridged version of Abd al-Halim Abu Shuqqah’s eight-volume series, originally published in Arabic, titled: “ Tahrir al-Mar’ah fi ‘Asr al-Risalah”. The cases he presented and discussed are sourced mainly from Saheeh al-Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim. His work provides a nuanced perspective on Muslim women’s issues. . ■ In this volume, the author presented insightful cases on mixed social life as the pattern in the early Muslim society book that sheds light on the multifaceted roles and contributions of Muslim women during the Prophet’s lifetime, challenging stereotypes and misconceptions. It covers topics on ibadah, works, minglings and more. He stressed on the importance of women’s participation in wider fields in shaping their communities and building nations.

■ He addressed many common “misogyny” practices or biases that persist in our culture. It is refreshing and comforting seeing the author point out the nonsensical stances that have been made to appear “religious” while having no reflection on the Sunnah, frankly speaking.

I really like and always am reminded of a hadith that tells the incident where Saidina Umar and Lady Asma argued about who has a better claim to Rasulullah regarding their hijrah. The way she stood up for herself is beautiful. :) Cos we know from seerah, people usually “fear” Saidina Umar. . ■ Nonetheless, the author still emphasises Islamic principles regarding modesty and appropriate conduct at all times. In a few cases, he repeated the hadiths, but explain them from different perspectives and touching different issues. Although, there are a few issues discussed that can be controversial and still up for scholarly debate, wallahualam.

■ I appreciate the author's efforts, may Allah swt has mercy on his soul. I encouraged my fellow sisters to read all the volumes in this series. So far, so good, alhamdulillah. A recommended book for quick references and understanding of Muslim women’s issues. . ---- ● Buy a preloved copy here: https://carousell.app.link/tT6bGIQLpCb . ● Buy new copies here: https://www.imanshoppe.com/products/the-muslim-womans-participation-in-social-life-volume-2-by-abd-al-halim-abu-shuqqah?ref=ICHAMICHA

#book review #islamic book #contemporary hadith scholar #kube publishing #ichamicha #carousell #Malaysia #imanshoppe #muslim women #women empowerment #hadith study

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nolabballgirl · 2 years

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Eid 2022: Muslim Books Wrap-up and Review Part i

we've almost made it through ramadan, so with eid coming up, i figure i'd list out some of the recently published books (2017 to present) with muslim main characters i've read over the year with spoiler-free reviews. young adult and lgbtq muslim fiction reviewed in part ii!

these books represent a wide spectrum of the muslim experience. from practicing, non-practicing, or questioning one's faith to spanning cultures, nationalities, and ethnic origins from across the globe. and we're only scratching the surface. some thoughts:

contemporary fiction/poetry:

bless the daughter raised by a voice in her head (2022/warsan shire) - this poetry collection by ms. shire (somali-british) was so moving and gripping. poems about womanhood, trauma, racism, migration. all told through the backdrop of this somali muslim family. *chef's kiss*

home fire (2017/kamila shamsie) - winner of the women's prize and a longlist for the man booker prize. yes, i know it touches upon themes of terrorism but stay with me here. reimagined greek classics are all the rage nowadays, so here we have a re-telling of antigone but from the perspective of a group of young south asian/pakistani muslims in the uk.

exit west (2017/mohsin hamed) - a shortlister for the man booker prize. such a unique take on migration and refugees with elements of magical realism. this speculative fiction novella follows a couple from an unnamed city escaping war and moving from country to country. a quick read with beautiful imagery/writing.

a burning (2020/megha majumdar) - an indian muslim teenager makes an offhand comment on facebook and gets swept up in a govt investigation following the aftermath of a terrorist attack. this one stays with you. super relevant given modi/bjp’s india.

a woman is no man (2019/etaf rum *tw domestic violence) - oh the woes of generational trauma and how hard it can be to break free. this novel is told from the pov of three generations of palestinian women from the same family, diving into themes of a woman's place in society, abuse, trauma, and shame. enjoyed it, but i do wish we got a little more perspective from fareeda (the grandmother).

the beauty of your face (2020/sahar mustafah *tw: school shooting, gun violence) - this novel takes place during a shooting at an islamic girls school in the chicago area. but it's interspersed with the story of the principal, a palestinian american woman and her family growing up as immigrants in the us. i actually found her life story to be a lot more compelling than the actual school shooting chapters, which felt reductive.

the stationary shop (2019/marjan kamali) - just a lovely little story about a persian woman and her lost love, spanning the course of 60 years in both iran and the us. partly told through prose and partly told through letters, this bittersweet tale stuck with me til the very end.

fantasy/dystopian:

the city of brass (2017/sa chakraborty) - book 1 of the daevabad trilogy. super enjoyable read, fantastic world building with various elements from cultures across the muslim world. and of one the main leads is an unabashed, practicing muslim too? sign me up!

the bird king (2019/g. willow wilson) - gww of ms. marvel fame sets up this beautifully vivid world of moorish spain during the inquisition and combines it with mythological creatures from the region (think jinns and more!) the novel does drag in the middle but otherwise it's an immersive experience.

i hope you get this message (2019/farah naz rishi) - the world is about to end (think aliens!) and these three teens need to get their respective acts together before that happens. i ended up really invested in certain characters (adeem - pakistani muslim boy and his friendship with cate) and them navigating complex family dynamics. not exactly dystopian but more of a contemporary novel feel. wish there was a stronger ending but enjoyed the journey.

we hunt the flame (2019/hafsah faizal) - so we're not treading new ground in terms of fantasy tropes and story here, but the setting and characters are worth the read for exploring the mythology and lore of the arab world. the story follows a young huntress disguised as a man and the forces/friends/loves she meets on the way. a solid first effort.

graphic novels:

huda f are you (2021/huda fahmy) - such a cute coming of age, graphic novel about a egyptian american girl trying to fit in high school in dearborn, michigan. very clever and wholesome. (it's from the same creator as the "yes, i'm hot in this" webcomic. she also has a short graphic novel on marriage called "that can be arranged.")

#muslim books #muslim authors #eid 2022 #book reviews #book recommendations #fantasy books #contemporary fiction #post ramadan reading #poetry

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yaworldchallenge · 2 years

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🇧🇩 Bangladesh

Region: Asia

The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali

Author: Sabina Khan

336 pages, published 2019

Original language: English

Native author? Yes

Age: Teen

Blurb:

Seventeen-year-old Rukhsana Ali has always been fascinated by the universe around her and the laws of physics that keep everything in order. But her life at home isn't so absolute.

Unable to come out to her conservative Muslim parents, she keeps that part of her identity hidden. And that means keeping her girlfriend, Ariana, a secret from them too. Luckily, only a few more months stand between her carefully monitored life at home and a fresh start at Caltech in the fall. But when Rukhsana's mom catches her and Ariana together, her future begins to collapse around her.

Devastated and confused, Rukhsana's parents whisk her off to stay with their extended family in Bangladesh where, along with the loving arms of her grandmother and cousins, she is met with a world of arranged marriages, religious tradition, and intolerance. Fortunately, Rukhsana finds allies along the way and, through reading her grandmother's old diary, finds the courage to take control of her future and fight for her love.

A gritty novel that doesn't shy away from the darkest corners of ourselves, The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali provides a timely and achingly honest portrait of what it's like to grow up feeling unwelcome in your own culture and proves that love, above all else, has the power to change the world.

Other reps: #lesbian #muslim

Genres: #contemporary #family #cross-cultural

My thoughts:

Well, that’s a pretty long blurb, and sums up most of the theme of the novel. I’ve heard good things about this book, though I’ve also heard it’s pretty heart-rending. I’m here for the queer girls, though.

Review to come.

Kindle link

#bangladesh #ya world challenge #ya books #lgbtq books #the love and lies of rukhsana ali #sabina khan #lesbian #muslim #contemporary #family #cross-cultural #asia

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raedas · 2 years

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hello bestie ik u won’t get this when i send it but hope ur enjoying it in iran!!!!!! i have a book rec for u that i think u might enjoy it’s called “how it all blew up” it’s like simon vs the homosapiens agenda except like…. good and about a muslim iranian guy coming out to his family and then going to rome with DRAMAAA so yeah <3 luv u mwah

BELOVED YOU HAD ME AT GAY MUSLIM IRANIAN IM FOAMING AT THE MOUTH. OH M YGODDOFKGJHREUOIFJWKPL

#HELLLOO6OO534O2ROT4Y6U7?^$Y%?#T@RQ?WE???#drama generally stresses me out i nbooks when its like . contemporary . BUT #GAY MUSLIM IRANIAN&%^$%#$@!?$%^&%?*^&^&%$#@ER$T%?&*^I?^UJTYR?NTBDF?SGD????????#THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU FOR TELLING ME ABOUT THIS HELLOOOOOOOIO\#side note im rereading raybearer and being so normal about it < lying #asks #eesha

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thedisabilitybookarchive · 4 months

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'Love From A to Z'- Ali, S. K.

Disability Rep: Multiple Sclerosis

Genre: Romance, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction

Age: Young Adult

Setting: Qatar

Additional Rep: Muslim MC, POC, M/F

For more information on summaries, content warnings and additional tropes, see here:

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ya-world-challenge · 2 years

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Book Review - Alif the Unseen (🇦🇪 UAE*)

(image source: Wikimedia Commons)

YA World Challenge book for: 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates (*inspired)

Alif the Unseen

Author: G. Willow Wilson

I read this book earlier in the year, before I came up with the World Challenge, so it has the distinction of being the only title on my list I had already read.

The book is set in current times (well, in 2012 when it was published) in a fictional autocratic emirate on the Arabian Peninsula. Seeing that the UAE has a human rights score of 17 out of 100 at freedomhouse.org and has a large population of non-citizen workers, the fictional location seems to match well enough.

It is more in the “new adult” range or upper YA due to the language and mature themes. Alif’s age is not stated, but my guess is 18-early 20s.

Review

The book follows Alif, alias for an Arab-Indian young hacker who spends time offering anonymity services to porn sites and terrorists alike without discrimination, and evading the Hand of God - the state’s new surveillance mechanism that has been cracking down on freedoms online. When one day he receives a mysterious old book from an ex-girlfriend, it turns his life upside-down, makes him an enemy of the state and draws him and childhood friend Dina into a world of djinn they never knew existed - the unseen world.

The story keeps up a quick pace - Alif is on the run from state authorities and there is danger at every turn as he tries to crack the mystery of the book, aided by Dina, and his newfound not-so-human friend Vikram the Vampire (also, not a vampire) whose crude manners conceal his many layers.

While the action is gripping, the djinn world intriguing, and our hero is fallible and likeable, the story has a tendency to bring up theology and philosophical musings as often as it can. Sometimes these are very interesting insights into Islam or human nature, and sometimes they leave you scratching your head - like how does an ancient book create a new way of coding that can melt a laptop and make its user near-transcend? Answer: it’s fantasy.

The character of the convert... I can’t tell if she’s uncomfortable because she’s an author insert or if she is supposed to make Westerners feel uncomfortable? By not naming her is the author playing on the old stereotyped trope of giving the “exotic” character no real name (ex. Punjab from Annie, the Persian from Phantom of the Opera)? I don’t think she would have been half as troubling if she would just have had a name.

On the other hand, I enjoyed Dina, who keeps things grounded, ever-practical, and refreshingly unwavering in her faith despite other’s opposition.

Overall, if you can gloss over the philosophizing and just take it at face value, you get an enjoyable fantasy thriller that mixes mythical djinn, Islamic theology, and modern authoritarian states and the people who resist them.

Pros:

Fast-paced mix of tech thriller and urban fantasy, as well as social commentary on freedoms in the Middle East

Smart secondary female character who wears a full veil, by her own choice

Nuanced, intelligent, positive representation of faith and religion

Cons:

Gets into some abstractness that can seem a little silly

Lots of philosophizing here and there about Islam and other concepts that might not be relevant to non-Muslims, tries to make broad statements on Western culture vs Eastern culture that again, maybe I just don’t get it

Recommended for: Those looking for an urban fantasy in a non-Western world; those looking for interesting fiction that puts Islam at the center

★ ★ ★ ★ 4 stars

Bookshop.org link || Kobo ebook

Genres: #fantasy, contemporary #thriller #faith #political #mythology

Other reps: #muslim #straight #hijabi

See content warnings on Storygraph

#book review #united arab emirates #ya world challenge #bookblr #book blog #bookish #contemporary fantasy #thriller #faith #political #mythology #muslim #straight #hijabi #middle east #4 stars

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militantbodies · 1 year

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This paper presents a conceptual undertaking into the sexuating logics of post-9/11 surveillance that are deployed to racialize Muslim-fem bodies. From the aesthetic imaginary that artist Zuhra Hilal constructs across her two artworks – An Exploration of the Nameless Anatomy (2015) and Surface (2018-ongoing) – I ask how the veil, as a kind of surrogate and sometimes erotogenic skin, gets read as a racial object not by its color but by the mutability and abstraction of its contiguous surfaces, and by the supplementarity between (imagined) essence and (projected) covering. Through Hilal’s artistic compositions, I demonstrate how the veil might capture a different sight of, and relation to, Muslim-fem bodies, one that participates in a larger speculative project on pleasure, visuality and desire.

#zuhra hilal #muslim women #contemporary art #opacity

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supernews · 2 years

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Suspected Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist arrested by police in Bengaluru

A suspected Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist has been arrested here in a joint operation by the Karnataka and Jammu & Kashmir police.

The accused, Talib Hussain was arrested on June 5, police sources said on Tuesday. Earlier, it was claimed that Hussain was arrested by the armed forces in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir. Hussain had allegedly taken shelter at a mosque in Srirampura here and used to deliver sermons during Friday prayers. According to police sources, Hussain had fled Jammu and Kashmir with his wife and children as the hunt for him was intensified by the armed forces, and was hiding in Bengaluru. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai confirmed Hussain's arrest from the city today. Asked if the terrorist was arrested, Bommai told reporters, "Yes." "Generally police keep an eye on people like them. We will provide whatever assistance is required to the Jammu and Kashmir police. In the past too, such arrests had taken place in Sirsi and Bhatkal." "The Jammu and Kashmir police have taken this very seriously, Bommai explained.