‘Good Talk’ by Mira Jacob: Heartbreaking, Funny, Vulnerable, & Real
“We think our hearts break only from endings — the love gone, the rooms empty, the future unhappening as we stand ready to step into it — but what about[…]
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On Modesty
A recent trip to Bangladesh made me think about the concept of modesty. Modesty generally refers to being unassuming or moderate in one’s behavior or comportment. In my Bangladeshi Muslim[…]
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Literature · Pop Culture · Religion
‘Mariam Sharma Hits the Road’ Takes 3 Pakistani American Teens on a Journey of Self-Discovery
Mariam Sharma Hits the Road is Sheba Karim’s third YA novel, as witty, charming, and fun loving as her first two but with a sharp political bent that distinguishes it[…]
Arts · Literature · Photos
Jaipur Literature Festival 2018: A Roundup Bursting With Flavor, Quotes, & Photos
I’ve read two roundups (here and here) of the spectacle that was the 2018 Jaipur Literature Festival (Jan. 24-28), plus avidly followed the hilarious Twitter handle, JLFInsider, and there was[…]
The Home That Was Our Country, A Personal & Political Memoir of Syria
There was nothing new for me about leaving Syria; separation has always been the defining condition of my relationship to the country. The Home That Was Our Country, releasing in paperback[…]
Sheba Karim’s That Thing We Call a Heart Shares Nuances of Teen Friendship & Faith
A post shared by Sheba Karim (@shebakarim) on May 9, 2017 at 2:27pm PDT What do you have to lose? My pride, for one. And that thing we call a[…]
Review: Kamila Shamsie’s Finely Drawn Home Fire Resonates With Increasing Intensity
Habits of secrecy are damaging things. Home Fire, longlisted for this year’s Man Booker Prize, is Kamila Shamsie’s much acclaimed seventh novel, and the first of hers I’ve read, though[…]
Review: Arundhati Roy’s Second Novel, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness
He narrowed his blindgreen eyes and asked in a slygreen whisper… Arundhati Roy’s second novel, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness (Knopf), published 20 years after her first beloved debut, The God[…]
Brooklyn Book Festival 2015 Amps Up New York’s Stellar Literary Offerings
The Brooklyn Book Festival is the largest free literary festival in New York. It has over 50 Bookend events flanking either end of the weekend, and tens of thousands of[…]
“Love Letter” Poetry Excerpt From Abeer Hoque
I push and I pull I watch and I wait I tire of being the one who wants I don’t have the courage to speak up and take it I[…]